The King's Daughter

A Lesson Learned too Late

2012-02-24T14:09:00.002-05:00

I thought this picture of two of my sisters was so sweet. It was actually taken about 8 years ago.

I am one of those people who can have a hard time showing my love to others. I might really love someone a lot, but I just don’t know how to tell or show them or else I am too shy to. I am not speaking here necessarily of romantic love either, I am speaking of love in general; love for my siblings, my parents, my friends, and others.

I have shared with you the story of my brother, Micah, and how he died and all. Just now I was thinking about him and just thinking how much I really loved him, and yet I am afraid I didn’t show him or tell him very well how much I really loved him. I am sure he knows that I loved him, yet I wish I had showed that love to him better.

I think one of the biggest reasons for not showing that love for him is that I thought he would get better. I thought I would have decades of more years with him. But no, that wasn’t God’s plan. God took him home shortly before his 16^th birthday. God’s ways are not our ways.

My point in sharing this is that we do not know how much longer we have to live. As much as we do not like to think about it, one of our siblings or a parent could die tomorrow or even today. It is not we who number our days, but God. We need to be prepared at all times and one of the ways we can be ready is to make sure our families, particularly, know that we really love them. If your sister, brother, mom, or dad died tomorrow, would they know for certain that you really loved them by your actions today?

I am saying all of this just as much to me as to you. I often go through my day without really showing my love for someone. I forget that I may not have a tomorrow with them. There really will be a tomorrow when we will no longer be able to tell them. How quickly that tomorrow comes, I do not know.

I do not wish this post to make you sad or fearful, but rather to encourage you to take the time to show love for your family and others. I wish you not to make the same mistake that I made myself.

By the way, I love all of you readers of my blog, whoever you may be. Thanks for taking the time to read what I write.

May your day be filled with smiles, laughter, and love in Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Peter 1:22-23

“Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,”

1 John 4:9-11

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

1 John 4:7

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”

1 Peter 3:8

“Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous;”

Thoughts on Snow

2012-02-21T20:49:00.000-05:00

We all eyed the TV screen with rapturous delight as we watched the delightful movie “Anne of Green Gables”. In the middle of watching this delightful movie, we had to bring it to a pause for a brief moment, because of a phone call from a friend. After being told by our friend about the snow they were getting, we decided to look out our window to see if we had any. Sure enough, what do we behold, but a world of white? Absolutely gorgeous!

Before I go on with my narrative, I have to let you in on a secret. I’ve never been much of a lover of snow! I mean really, when it melts, it’s just one big muddy mess. Not only that, but around here, it doesn’t really snow enough to have a good sledding. Thus, cold and mucky, right? Wrong perspective, nevertheless! This winter has been pretty mild. In fact, I didn’t even think it would snow at all, which I would have been perfectly fine with.

So, back to the story. It had finally snowed for the first time this winter. You know, I think I had kind of forgotten the beauty of snow! Any how, after we had finished watching the movie, the power goes off. Yep! Hardly any wind outside and only about an inch or two of snow. We live with that, though, because that is just what happens in our little neighborhood in the woods.

When the power goes off, there are about two things you can do, either go outside, or go to bed. My sister and I chose to go outside. Oh, I forgot to mention to you that it was around 9:30pm, thus, not the typical hour for playing outside if you ask me. Anyway my sister and I had a most enchanting time wandering about in God’s marvelous creation. I must admit I did talk her ear off (please forgive me, dear), but that was just to ward off any wild beast that might wish to attack us. Believe me, after hearing the first sound of my approach, I am sure they took flight as quickly as possible.

It was so serene and blissful! I have not the words to describe the tranquility of the moment. It was completely heavenly!

I have changed my mind slightly about snow! Although, it can be a nuisance, God created it for His glory. Snow is something of an amazement to me! To think that every snowflake is different, yet each one has its own beautiful design. It is like people. God created each person different, yet He calls all of us beautiful. We are all exquisite and unique in a different way. (Psalm 139:13-16 “You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.”) Isn’t God awesome? The other thing that I love about snow is that it comes down and covers the earth and trees and makes everything look brand new and clean. The Bible says that when we accept Jesus into our heart and ask Him to forgive us of our sin, He will wash us as white as snow. (Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.) What a beautiful comparison! God makes our heart as white, as pure, and as clean as snow! Isn’t God awesome?

I don’t know about you, but I love snow! Thank you, Jesus, for the snow that you send, to remind us of your great love for each one of your children.

Here we are hugging our happy Little Southern Snowman. We call him Southern because why else would he be made of half leaves unless he was made in the south. He has now fallen over and lies melting away in our backyard.

True Love

2012-02-14T12:27:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

John 15:12-14

“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.”

2 John 6

“This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.”

Matthew 22:37-39

“Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'”

Ephesians 3:17-19

“that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Ephesians 5:1-2

“Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”

Treasure Each Moment

2012-02-10T18:06:00.000-05:00

When I was just a little lass,

I had baby sisters to cuddle and hold,

But years have passed.

The youngest is now seven years old.

Treasure each moment.

Treasure each passing day.

It wasn’t that long ago

When I had four brothers around

Oh, the times we had,

The mysteries to solve, or treasures we found.

Treasure each moment.

Treasure each passing day.

I once was just a little girl.

I loved to make those delicious mud pies,

Or relax in a puddle of goopy mud,

Or run at night, after fireflies

Treasure each moment.

Treasure each passing day.

Many years have passed.

It’s not the same as it used to be.

Eighteen years are flashing by.

Soon even today will be history.

Treasure each moment.

Treasure each passing day.

-Written by Hannah-

February 6, 2012

Treasure Each Moment While it Lasts

2012-02-07T20:45:00.000-05:00

When I first thought to write about this, I was going to say something like treasure each moment with your siblings while you have them. Well, I decided to broaden the category and make it every moment.

It is so important that we enjoy each season of our life. It won’t last forever and someday you’ll miss it, so treasure it now while you can.

Treasure those moments you have with your family because some day you’ll grow up or they’ll grow up and move out and then you’ll miss them. I have four brothers, but they’ve all moved out now. First my oldest brother moved off to college. Then my third brother, almost 16 years old, goes home to be with Jesus. Then my second brother goes to college. Lastly my fourth brother leaves the home and goes to college. I miss each one of them a lot. Treasure the times you have with your siblings.

Maybe you’re a young mom with lots of crazy little children running around. Maybe you’re tired of the endless runny noses to clean or the dirty diapers to change, or fights to break up. Believe it or not, some day they will grow up and move out, too. Treasure those moments. Some day the house will be still and quiet. No more the sound of little running feet; no more chubby little faces to kiss goodnight; no more muddy floors to clean from dirty feet. You’ll wish it all back when it is too late. Children grow up a lot quicker then you realize, just ask my Mom.

Treasure each moment. It won’t last forever. If you are always wanting what you do not have then you will never be happy. Learn to be content in every season of life and your joy will be full. Laugh with your little brothers or sisters. Laugh with them over a little joke they tell. Take each season of your life with joy. Treasure each moment while it lasts.

Philippians 4:4

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!”

1 Timothy 6:6

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain.”

A Godly Young Man

2012-02-03T16:47:00.001-05:00

Titus 2:6-8

“Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things show yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.”

Young Ladies, this is the kind of man you should desire for a husband. Young Men, this is the way you should strive to live.

Ladies, it says plainly right here how a godly young man is to live. He should be a man striving to live soberly. He should be setting a pattern of good works. His doctrine and speech should be sound, which means unwavering. It should be full of integrity and reverence, and without corruptness.

A man whose doctrine is not soundly biblical is not a man you want to marry. How can he lead his family if he is unsure or wavering as to what is true? He must be a man who is solidly grounded in the word of God. He should speak the word with integrity and reverence. If he is man who scoffs or mocks God’s Word, then he doesn’t really reverence the Word. Don’t fall for him.

Young Men, these verses describe how your life should be. Live up to it by God’s grace. Read God’s Word daily. If you are not reading His Word daily, then how can you have solid doctrine? Sound doctrine comes from studying God’s Word daily. Your way of living should put your opponents to shame. Rise up in this world to be a leader of sound doctrine and speech. Be an example of good works to those watching you. Be the godly man that every godly girl wants for a husband.

Note: If you would like to read what I wrote about the woman then see my last post here:Being the Older and Younger Woman

Thanks for reading! I hope you have been blessed and encouraged today by my blog.

May your day be full of sunshine and happiness in Jesus!

Being the Older and Younger Woman

2012-02-02T19:31:00.000-05:00

Titus 2:3-5

“The older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things — that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.”

I had just studied these verses and was thinking about my roll as an 18 year old woman. My first thought would be that I am a younger woman. I need to be discreet and chaste. I need to be learning from those older than me, how I can be a good wife and homemaker someday. I was reminded at the same time that I am also the older woman. I have four younger sisters. I have several friends who are younger than I. There are bloggers that are younger than I. You might be younger than me. There are so many women younger than myself. So what is my roll as an older woman? It says clearly that I am to teach the younger women. Although I am not married, thus, I cannot very well tell a younger woman how to be a good wife, there is much more that I can do. I can be showing younger women how to submit to their father, by submitting to my own father cheerfully. I can show younger women how to love their siblings by being a good example of that myself. I can demonstrate how to take care of a home by knowing how to cook and clean, and helping my mom with these things. I need to be a godly example for younger women to follow and look at. I cannot just confess with my mouth what I believe, but I need to prove it with my actions.

These verses would apply to all girls and women. Every female has a woman older than herself and a girl younger than herself. Thus, we should be learning from our elders, and teaching and being an example to those younger than ourselves. Our lives should be discreet and chaste. That means living a holy, disciplined, and pure life set apart for Christ.

Let us strive together to live up to these verses by God’s grace. Let us strive to be the woman God has called us to be. Let us be the kind of woman that every godly young man wants for a wife.

Flowers in January

2012-01-31T17:06:00.001-05:00

Isaiah 61:10-11

"I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,

My soul shall be joyful in my God;

For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,

He has covered me with the robe of righteousness,

As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments,

And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

For as the earth brings forth its bud,

As the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth,

So the Lord God will cause righteousness and

praise to spring forth before all the nations."

True Beauty!

2012-01-30T20:32:00.000-05:00

"Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,

but a woman who fears the Lord,

she shall be praised."

Proverbs 31:30

But What Did My Mom Do?

2012-01-25T20:25:00.000-05:00

Recently my mom, sisters, and I went to a baby shower for a friend. I had crocheted a blanket for her, Priscilla had knitted a hat and booties, and Elisabeth and Bethany had designed some beautiful cards. Everyone there was amazed at our creativity, oohing and awing at our talent. Then one of the ladies turned to me and said, "But what did your Mom do?" I just laughed and said that she bought the yarn.

Later I began to think about that question more seriously. What had my Mom done? Yes, it is true she hadn't made any of those gifts. She doesn’t know how to knit or crochet; neither is she the best artist (Although she has drawn some pretty cute things before.) So what has my Mom done?

Well, my mom has done more then you realize. For starters, she's the one that married my Dad and gave birth to us. What woman is willing to go through birth pains nine times? I know that there are plenty of women out there who would and have, but I also know that there are plenty who wouldn't even give it a thought. Nonetheless, my Mom did. We won't even go into the fact that my mom had four boys first (Anyone with more that one boy, particularly close in age, would probably no what I am talking about.) That right there is an act of bravery. We would never have been able to make what we did if mom hadn't given birth to us.

Secondly my mom has spunk and courage. She had the spunk to home school all nine of her children and she's still going. She had the courage to go against what the world tells you is best and instead did what God says is best. She had the courage to walk with her son, Micah, through leukemia with four years of treatment, before he went home to be with Jesus.

If my mom had sent us off to school so that she could work, it is not very likely that we would have learned any of that. We would have been quite busy with school and not had much time to do anything else. Also very likely we wouldn't have had the desire to learn to crochet, knit, or be an artist. Yet, since my mom has stayed home and schooled us, it has given us the opportunity to learn these things.

Yeah, it may be true that my mom is not an artist. Yeah, she can't crochet a blanket either. No, she can't knit (although we've tried to teach her). It's true, she ain't no artist. But believe me she has done a whole lot more. She has daily sacrificed her life and desires so that she can raise up Godly men and women for the next generation. She has cooked thousands of meals, so that we can be healthy and strong. She has taught all of her children (including the boys) how to cook, so that one day we can be a blessing and help to our families. She has taught us math, english, science, history, Latin, etc.. She has diligently taught us the Word of God. She has set an example for us to follow. She has encouraged us to pursue whatever we are interested in, so we can use our gifts for the glory of God. She prays for us daily, that we might not stray from what is most important. She continually reminds us that what is most important is that we do all for the glory of God.

So what has my Mom done? A lot! All that I have just told you is only a small amount of what my mom has done. I haven’t even mentioned the fact that my mom is an astonishing cook, a brilliant writer, and a first rate teacher. The list of all that my mom has done for us, so that we could do and be who we are is endless. I haven’t even begun to mention the talent she has.

So what is greater, knowing how to knit and crochet, or being a godly woman who gives up her life daily for her children? Truly my mom has given the greater gift. The gift that mom has given has made her truly more happy then any amount of art, crocheting, or knitting that me or my sisters can do.

What about you? Do you sometimes feel like you have no talent whatsoever? Well, it doesn't matter. You don't need to be a pro at knitting or crocheting. You don't have to be the best artist. You don't need to know how to play an instrument. The most important and satisfying thing you can do is give up all for the sake of Christ. Live your life wholly consecrated to God. Give up your life daily for others. That is the best talent a person can have. It is the talent that truly brings the most joy.

Maybe you’re one of those people who has a lot of talent, though. Maybe you can do anything you put your hands to do. Yet, that is nothing, if you’re not doing it for the glory of God. It is all a complete waste of time if you are not doing it for Christ.

American Women’s Clothing over the Years

2012-01-20T20:31:00.001-05:00

The clothing styles of American women have changed drastically from the days of the pioneer women to the women of today. For example take a look at the flapper dresses, the bell-bottom jeans, mini skirts, or skinny jeans just to name a few.

During the years of the pioneer women the dress was very simple. They could not afford silks or bustles; therefore, they mainly wore cotton, wool, or muslin. They would wear at least one petticoat underneath there dresses depending on how cold it was. They also shortened their skirts enough so that it wouldn’t drag in the mud or dirt since they had to do a lot of outside farm work. They also wore an apron over their dress to protect it from getting dirty or torn, thus preventing it from having to be washed as often. (It was much easier to wash an apron then a dress.) Women also often wore a bonnet to protect themselves from the sun, as they had to do a lot of outside work.

In the early 1800s women continued to dress fairly simple, but toward the mid-1800s dress began to get a bit more extravagant. Women wore dresses or skirts that reached to their ankle or even to the floor. Wearing steel hoops under their skirt to give them a more rounded look and corsets to give more shape and support for the upper body also became more popular. In the late 1800s the clothing became more fitted, desiring to show off their tightly corseted torso. They also wore a lot of bows, ribbons, lace, and such.

The 1900s probably experienced the most change in clothing styles. Women continued to wear the tight fitting clothes with a narrow silhouette. Also at one point the rear-enhancing bustle was popular. Then in 1907 Paul Poret invented the loose-fitting, high-waistline, elegant dresses with no corset underneath. In the 1920s pants became more popular along with short skirts and low waistlines. Dresses were often designed to hug the body, particularly the most private parts, to emphasize a youthful beauty, yet also trying to attract the attention of the males. During the war women had to dress more simple and make do with what they had, by patching old clothes. After the war was over women were more then ready to go back to their extravagant style of living, emphasizing narrow waists, round shoulders, and full skirts. The 1960-70s was a time of youth rebellion against the traditional styles. Thus began the styles of bell-bottoms, increasingly short mini-skirts, and shorts or hot pants as they were known at that time. The clothing styles had become so diverse that there was hardly a recognizable style.

Today’s clothing style is much like that of the late 1900s. Tight fitting clothes to show off the figure, extremely short skirts and dresses, and shamefully low necklines are prevalent in today’s culture. Exceedingly tight pants, known as skinny jeans, are also popular, along with the use of leggings under a dress that hardly covers the bottom. However, there are some who still prefer the long skirts or more loose fitting tops and other clothing that does not reveal too much of the female figure.

As you see not all the changes in a females apparel have been good. The tight fitting or low cut tops, and short length skirts have been designed to attract the men, thus creating an easy avenue for the males to lust, or else a stumbling block to our brothers in Christ. Nevertheless, some of the changes have been good. Take for example the use of the corset going out of style. The corsets women used to use were very constricting and would often cause rib displacement, curvature of the spine, fainting and more, some of these things permanently damaging the woman’s body.

-Written by Hannah -

October 11, 2011, Tuesday

Blogging!

2012-01-17T20:23:00.000-05:00

So here are some questions for the bloggers out there and those who read blogs.

When you read other peoples blogs do you like to read long posts or short posts?

Are you more likely to read a blog if it has pictures for the posts?

Do you like to comment on peoples blogs? (If you don’t then I probably won’t ever find out because you probably won’t comment on this post.☺)

Do you think I should post more pictures on my blog?

What do you think I should blog about?

A Crocheted Blanket!

2012-01-10T16:43:00.001-05:00

Although I never thought I would ever crochet a blanket, because I thought it would take too long and become boring, I did end up doing one in less then a month. I made it for a little friend of mine, which I think is the reason why it was actually enjoyable to make. I find that I enjoy making something a lot more when I have someone to give it to, than when I am just making it for myself. So here are some pictures of my first crocheted blanket.

Working on it.

Still working

I thought this picture looked kind of old-fashioned because it was taken with a digital camera looking through an old film camera.

Me and the finished blanket.

The finished blanket.

Do you like to crochet? If so what are your favorite things to make? What are some things that you have made?

Have a happy day in Jesus!

The Fort Cake

2011-12-23T14:39:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was my sister, Lydia's, 7th birthday and she wanted a Fort Cake. So here are some pictures of how it turned out. It was a lot of fun to make!

This is after the fort had been destroyed (or eaten) by the enemy ;)

Hope you have a very happy day in Jesus!

A letter to Micah

2011-12-17T14:50:00.003-05:00

Dear Micah,

Today marks 6 years since you went home to be with Jesus. I miss you lots. I miss hearing you say “Chimpanzees on the roof!” or “No sirry, Bob! No sirry, Bob!”. I miss hearing you sing and play your guitar. I miss the silly songs you would make up about someone who walked into your room. I miss competing with you on who had better handwriting (You know I won on that one, right?) I miss the competitions to see who can do the most lessons of Math in one day. I miss your laughter and smile. I miss your jokes and humor that made me laugh so often. I miss the funny stories you would post on Xanga. I miss seeing you wear that “Stinky hat”. And, yes, we all remember how much you loved Peanut butter, right? Haha! ;) Or how much you detested mint ice cream, or mint cake or mint brownies or even mint pancakes? ;) haha! Oh, yes, and beavers gnaw on trees, right? ;)
There is so much that I miss and will keep on missing until the day I see you again. But I know, however much I miss you, I’ll never wish you back down on this earth, where there is so much pain and sorrow, sin, tears, sadness, and suffering.
I know you are praising Jesus right now. I can just imagine you sitting at Jesus feet, with a guitar more beautiful then could be imagined on this earth, praising Him with songs of love to your Savior.
I rejoice with you, Micah, to know that you are safely home. Some day I will come and join you there. I’ll be able to sing with you, too, and no one will be able to laugh at my voice not even you! ;)

I love you, Micah!

Your Waiting Sister,
Hannah

Note: Just in case you didn't figure it out already, Micah did not like peanut butter, but loved mint.

Little Time to Write, Before I take Flight

2011-12-13T20:48:00.000-05:00

Dear readers out there who read my blog,
I’m sure you’ve missed my random thoughts.
But my excuse is good. You see, I have to jog,
Or do my school work, which there is lots.

I have daily chores to do and places to go
And life gets busy and starts to fly,
(As you very well may already know)
And before you know it, a month goes by.

Posting on my silly blog gets quite forgotten
In all the whirl of these busy days.
And I forget all the thoughts I had thoughten,
When I get lost in this crazy maze.

But when life calms down for just a moment,
I remember to take time to write,
Maybe I’ll write a letter or encouragement,
Cheering others on, in what is right.

But off I must go once again.
When you see me next I do not know?
And that is all I plan on sayin’.

Words of Sunshine

2011-12-09T19:55:00.000-05:00

"A word spoken pleasantly is a large spot of sunshine on a sad heart. Therefore, 'Give others the sunshine, tell Jesus the rest.'" From Streams in the Desert by Mrs. Chas. E. Cowman.

May your day be filled with sunshine. God bless you!

Stop Supposin' and Start Trustin'

2011-11-26T20:25:00.000-05:00

I found this little story in an old devotional book (written in 1925) called “Streams in the Desert”. It blessed me and so I thought I would share it with you so that you also might be blessed by it.

I once met a poor colored woman, who earned a precarious living by hard daily labor; but who was a joyous triumphant Christian. “Ah, Nancy,” said a gloomy Christian lady to her one day, “it is well enough to be happy now; but I should think the thoughts of your future would sober you.
“Only suppose, for instance, you should have a spell of sickness, and be unable to work; or suppose your present employers should move away, and no one else should give you anything to do; or suppose…..”
“Stop!” cried Nancy, “I never supposes. De Lord is my Shepherd, and I knows I shall not want. And, Honey,” She added, to her gloomy friend, “it’s all dem supposes as is makin’ you so mis’able. You’d better give dem all up, and just trust de Lord.”

Summary of the Gospel of Luke

2011-11-05T11:11:00.000-04:00

The book of Luke, believed to have been written by Luke a gentile, was probably written around A.D. 60

Luke begins his book with an introduction (Luke 1:1-4). He is writing to Theophilus, about Jesus, so that he will believe and know the truth. The life is of Christ is indeed true and we should believe it with our hearts not just our head.

(Luke 1:5-2:52) He then goes on to tell us the account of Gabriel, the angel, appearing before Zacharias and Mary and bringing the good tidings that each will be given a son. Yet Zacharias does not believe and is therefore struck dumb until his son, John, is born, while Mary does believe and is greatly blessed among women, bearing the Messiah, Savior of the world. When we believe the truth, we are blessed, yet disbelief comes with great consequences. When Jesus gets to the age of about twelve He is then seen in the temple listening and learning from the teachers, thus, setting the example for us to listen and learn from those in authority over us.

Luke 3:1-4:13 goes on to tell of John's ministry, preaching a baptism of repentance. Jesus goes into the wilderness and is tempted by Satan for forty days, yet He teaches us how we should respond to temptation by resisting and responding with God's Word to prove Satan wrong.

In Luke 4:14-9:50 Jesus returns to Galilee and begins His ministry of healing the sick and demon possessed, forgiving sins, performing miracles, and teaching his disciples. Many times we are told that the person was healed because of his faith (for examples see Luke 5:20, 7:2-10, 7:50).It takes faith to believe in Christ and to believe what he can do for me.

Luke 9:51-19:44 Tells of Jesus beginning His journey to Jerusalem. Jesus continues to teach the people, often times in parables ( such as the Parable of the Good Samaritan, who helps a stranger who has been wounded, showing us how to love our neighbor; The Parable of the Rich Fool, who wants more even though he already has so much, showing us the foolishness of covetousness; The Parable of the Lost Son, who goes off to squander all that he has and then realizes his sin and goes back to his father who freely forgives him, thus showing us what true repentance and forgiveness is like.) He also corrects the Pharisees, specifically about healing on the Sabbath, which they did not believe was lawful. He then goes riding into Jerusalem on the colt which had never been sat upon before, and all the people worship Him, even though the Pharisees tried to shut them up. Jesus is indeed the King of kings, and He will be worshiped, even if it is the stones that cry out as it says in verse 40 of chapter 19.

(Luke 19:45-21:38) Jesus continues to correct the Scribes and Pharisees, when they question Him. Jesus also talks about the end times, warning us to be watchful for the return of Christ, because we do not know when it will be, but we should be prepared.

(Luke 22:1-24:53) Jesus has his last Passover with His disciples until the Kingdom of God is fulfilled. Then Jesus goes into the Garden of Gethsemane with His disciples, to pray. Jesus is then betrayed by Judas and then mocked, beaten, scourged, and hung on the cross to die. He was buried by Joseph, yet three days later He rises again and appears before His disciples and many others before He ascends into heaven. Christ died a perfect death on the cross for our sins so that we could live, thus fulfilling the law.

Luke 24:44 (Then he said to them, "These are words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning me.") sums up all that Luke has told us. Luke is telling us that through Christ's perfect life and death and ascension, the Law of Moses was fulfilled concerning Him.

A main theme in Luke I believe is faith. All through the book it talks about faith; some people did not have faith (such as the Pharisees), and others did have faith (those who were healed). Another theme, that I think ties right in with faith, is forgiveness. Jesus would often forgive someone of their sins when he healed them and, of course, there is the ultimate healing and forgiveness that comes through the blood of Jesus Christ when he died on the cross.

Something Sweet!

2011-10-30T17:20:00.000-04:00

The Best Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon raisin rolls with frosting

Dough:

½ cup warm water (105-110 degrees)

2 pkgs. Active Dry Yeast, 2 scant Tbsp.

2 tbsp. sugar

1 3.5oz. Pkg. instant vanilla pudding

½ cup butter, melted

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. salt

8 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup butter, melted, to be used when putting rolls together

Filling:

2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed (or your choice of sweetener)

4 tsp. Cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 8oz. cream cheese, softened

½ cup butter, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tbsp. milk, just enough to fluff

Combine all ingredients and mix until smooth.

In a small bowl, combine water, yeast, and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside. In the large bowl, make pudding mix according to package directions. Add butter, eggs, and salt; mix well. Add the yeast mixture; blend. Gradually add flour and knead until smooth, adding “sprinklings” of flour as needed to control stickiness. Once the dough is no longer sticky and is soft and silky feeling (like as baby’s behind), the dough is ready. Place in very large greased bowl. Cover and let rise until double in bulk (about an hour). Punch down. On a lightly floured surface, roll out to approximately a 34 by 21 rectangle. Spread 1 cup of melted butter over surface (I find this easiest to spread with my fingers.) In small bowl, mix brown sugar and cinnamon together (can add raisins and nuts if desired). Sprinkle all over top of surface. Roll up very tightly. With a knife put a notch every two inches. With a string or thread, place under roll by notch and criss-cross over to cut roll (makes a nice clean cut).place on greased baking pan, two inches apart (this allows room for the rolls to raise). Lightly press rolls down with your hands (just a little, it helps to hold them together better.) Cover and let rise until double again. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Take them out when they are just starting to turn golden. Don’t over bake. Frost warm rolls with cream cheese frosting.

Caramel sticky buns

Carmel sticky bun option:

1 recipe cinnamon rolls (from above)

1 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

9 tbsp. light corn syrup

1 cup pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped

In a sauce pan or in your microwave oven, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup. Heat and stir until blended. Pour sauce into the bottom of the pan(s) you are using for the rolls. Place unbaked cinnamon rolls on top of the caramel sauce. Cover and let rise until double again (about an hour). Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Take them out when they are just starting to turn golden. Don’t over bake. After removing pans from oven, cover with foil; invert on to cooling rack, cook one minute and remove pan. Cool before serving.

I hope you enjoy these delicious rolls.

Have a happy day full of smiles and laughter!

Let Them See Jesus!

2011-10-19T21:06:00.000-04:00

What’s the first thing you want a man to think of when he sees you? The way you dress tells a whole lot about the answer to that question. If we as Christian women dress to try to get guys attention then we will get that attention. They might be thinking really nice or flattering remarks about you. They might even tell you some. Yet are these thoughts the first that we want guys to think of when they see us. What about the nonbelievers who would be thinking all kinds of lustful thoughts about you? Do we really care so much about the attention from guys that we would give away our purity? Personally I don’t. If we are godly Christian girls then that is not what we should want guys to think of us. Would we not much rather men see Christ in us instead of being distracted with the way we are dressed.

When a godly man looks at me I do not want his first thoughts of me to be lustful. Neither do I want his first thoughts of me to be flattery. I would much rather him see Jesus in me. I want him to be pointed to Christ when he sees me, and not to myself. I want him to see the joy of the Lord written all over my face, not a mask of makeup that the real me hides behind (not that I am against girls wearing any makeup). I want him to see a servant’s heart, not one who is always thinking about self. I want him to be able to look at my face without being distracted by how I am dressed.

In conclusion what would you rather have, a man lust after you, or see Christ in you; A man flatter you or be pointed to Christ through you? I want men to see Christ in me. The way that we, Christian women, dress tells a lot about what our Christian brothers in Christ will think of us. So let us be careful to clothe ourselves in purity.

Why I like Winter

2011-10-15T13:57:00.000-04:00

Winter is not my favorite month. I’ve always liked summer better. I would much rather be sitting in the nice warm sun, than be freezing and always having to put on bundles of coats and jackets. I’ve never really enjoyed having to start putting on shoes again and snow makes big mud messes. But it is better to be thankful then to grumble or complain. So I have decided to make a list of thinks that I like about winter. I know that winter is not quite here, but it is definitely starting to get colder, so here are some reasons for liking winter.

1. No more spider webs to worry about walking into.
2. Walking through the woods without being tormented about getting ticks on me.
3. Stepping on the crunchy crisp leaves without having to watch out for snakes.
4. Climbing a tree without having to take off all the granddaddy-long-legs first.
5. Enjoying a cozy Tea Party with friends or sisters.
6. Sitting for a nice cup of hot Chocolate to warm my bones after coming in from the biting cold air.
7. Christmas! Celebrating Jesus birth!
8. Baking pies in the kitchen on a blistery cold day.
9. Sledding down our road with all the neighbor friends.
10. Waking up early in the morning to the sound of the crackling fire.
11. Watching huge snow flakes come fluttering down to the ground.

What is your favorite season? What do you like about winter?

Have a happy day in Jesus!
Smile lots!
Laugh often!

Thanks a Million!

2011-10-04T20:37:00.000-04:00

I have been given an awarded for being sweet and kind by Meggie at http://inkdrips.wordpress.com/. Thank you so much Meggie. That was very sweet of you.

So I would like to award 5 other bloggers who have left kind comments on my blog.
Here they are:

Amy at http://proverbs31ten.wordpress.com/

Becky at http://heritageofgrace.wordpress.com/

Kira at http://themissionofachristian.com/

Meggie at http://inkdrips.wordpress.com/

Hannah at http://hannahereynolds.blogspot.com/

Thank you all, so much for leaving sweet and kind comments on my blog. Now if you would like then you can award five other bloggers who have left you kind comments, but you don’t have to if you don’t want to, especially if you have already done it ;). I also would like to thank all the others who have left sweet comments on my blog or who have not left any comments, but still read it. Ego tibi gratias maximus ago!
God bless!

North Carolina, the Best State

2011-09-27T19:42:00.000-04:00

(Note: before you read this and think that I am very prejudice, this was a school project and also North Carolina is the only state I have ever lived in.)

North Carolina is the best state in the Union. Why in the world would I make such a radical statement as that? I’ll just delve right in and tell you my many reasons for believing this. Foremost is the beauty of NC. North Carolina is known for its clear blue skies. It also has impressive mountains and gorgeous waterfalls. NC’s outer banks have some of the most beautiful beaches in the U.S. The country side is one of rare and tranquil splendor with its beautiful rolling hills. Every season is vivid with color and life. Spring is full of new life as the flowers pop up, trees begin to bud, birds come out to sing, and squirrels chatter with excitement. Summer shines with brightness and cheer. Fall is flamboyant with color and winter, bare and cold, yet elegant when it snows. The temperatures here are just right. The summers are not too hot like in Florida, Texas, or Arizona. Nor are the winters too cold as in North Dakota, Maine, Wyoming, and Alaska. Moreover, it is the largest producer of sweet potatoes in the nation. In my family sweet potatoes are pretty important considering that almost every year for both Christmas and Thanksgiving we like to make Sweet Potato Casserole, a delightful and tasty dish. What’s more is Krispy-Crème Doughnuts was founded right in Winston-Salem. What can beat a Krispy-Crème Doughnut? Not much, although, maybe Duncan Doughnuts can. In addition, Pepsi was invented and first served in New Bern; Cheerwine was invented in Salisbury; Cookout, which has some of the best smoothies ever, began in Greensboro; Texas Pete, the best of hot sauces, was invented in NC; and my state leads the nation in furniture. Moreover, NC is home to many well known people. Andrew Jackson, our seventh president, was born in western NC. Mecklenburg County is the hometown of James Polk another president of the U.S.A. Richard Petty, of NASCAR fame, was born in Level Cross. In fact, NASCAR has not had a driver win as many races as does Richard Petty. (Also, my mom got his autograph.) Andy Griffith, from the well-known and much-loved “Andy Griffith Shows” was born in Mt. Airy. Roanoke is home to the first English child, Virginia Dare, born in America. A personal favorite, the thick southern accent of true North Carolinians is invigorating. Last of all, I live in NC, and I’m tellin’ ya that makes North Carolina awesome, indeed. (Just kidding). In Short, North Carolina is, in fact, a marvelous state.

Have a happy day!
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
Smile often!

Message on Modesty by Albert Martin

2011-09-05T17:57:00.000-04:00

Here is a good bold message on modesty that I would encourage you to take the time to listen to. I hope you are blessed by it.
http://illbehonest.com/Ladies-Does-How-You-Dress-Cause-Men-to-Lust-Albert-Martin

God bless you!

This is The day That the Lord Has Made

2011-09-03T20:33:00.000-04:00

The Day Begins

The sun smiled upon the earth.

The early dawn had given birth.

Birds awoke with a song on there lips.

Squirrels dug for their acorn chips.

Owls doze from their midnight raid.

The hen's eggs had earlier been laid.

Rooster awoke and strutted about,

Then cockle-doodle-dooed his morning out.

All of creation has begun to stir.

"It is time to get up, young sir."

If you awake with a grumpy face,

God's grace can put a smile in its place.

This beautiful day has now begun,

And so has all the business and fun.

Written by-Hannah

September 3, 2011

"This is the day the LORD has made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalm 118:24

Have a happy day!
Smile! Jesus loves you!

The Girl I was and the Girl I am

2011-08-25T15:35:00.000-04:00

Me (in the red shirt)having fun playing in the mud with my brother.

What do you think of when you think of girls/females? You might think of the color pink or you might think of fancy dresses and lace. You might think of someone who does all the cooking or cleaning in the house, or you may think of fingernail polish, hair accessories, and jewelry. You might think of someone who doesn’t climb trees, but instead sits inside and sews, knits, crochets, or cross stitches. You might think of someone who has tea parties with her dolls. You might think of someone who talks nonstop. All of these things are known to be fairly girlish things to do. Then again, you do hear of those tom-girls who run wild, get dirty, and play in the mud with the boys. You know? The one who can’t sit still. The one who’s always getting themselves into scrapes. The one who hates to sew or stand in the kitchen and bake.

Well, I would say that I was more like the tom-girl type of girl. I have nine siblings, I am the oldest girl and I have four older brothers. As a little girl I would do everything with my big brothers. That is everything that they would allow me to do. And if there was something that I couldn’t do because I was too young then I would be pretty disturbed. I liked or hated the same things they did. For example, if they hated cats, well, then, I hated cats, too. (Well, I did love cats at one point, but when we finally got one I decided to hate them.) I didn’t play much with dolls until my first sister came along and got old enough to play with them, then I guess she convinced me to play with her. I am told that one older gentleman said I was more wild then all of my brothers. I can hardly believe that was true though because my brothers were pretty wild themselves. Yet, my brothers did enjoy cooking, so, of course, I did, too. I guess that was one of the few womanly things that I really enjoyed doing when I was younger. (and when I say younger I mean the ages 10 and younger.) As much as I loved doing everything with my brothers, there were a few things that I didn’t love or maybe I should say I wasn’t very good at, thus, I couldn’t do it very well when they did it. For example, being overly adventurous at mountains and climbing trees. As boys can be, my brothers were and still are rather crazy it seems when it comes to being on mountains. When my brothers get treacherously close to the edge of a cliff, or better yet decide to climb down (or up as the case may be) that cliff, you will most likely find me sitting at a safe distance away from the edge. I will most likely be eyeing my brothers with a look of concern, as if I were the mother trying not to preach to them too many sermons on the dangers of getting so close. Climbing trees, the other thing that boys are known for doing, was also not in my line. I’m sure I did try tree climbing, but didn’t for two reasons, I am somewhat afraid of heights and I am a horrible tree climber. I just wasn’t born with that special gift.
Several years have gone by and now three of my brothers have gone off to college (the other went home to be with the Lord) and I am now usually the oldest child at home, therefore, it has given me some things to think about, such as realizing almost for the first time that I have four younger sisters looking at me and watching me and following me. It has helped me to see the huge responsibility that I have. I want to be a good example to them of what a godly young woman looks like. I am not saying that I was a bad example when I was younger, (although I didn’t show them very well how a lady should act) nor am I saying that I am a perfect little princess now. I am often told to “calm down” or to “stop talking so loud” and I am known in my family for being rather silly and obnoxious. Yet I honestly do want to be an example to my younger sisters that I would be happy for them to follow.
I’m still not the typical 18 year old girl. I still don’t wear makeup nor do I want to. I don’t have a boyfriend (I have decided to wait and do courtship.). I don’t care to dress in the latest fashion. I have never been one to stress too much over my hair. Yet, I do hate snakes and I despise spiders and granddaddy-long-legs. I also do enjoy cooking, crocheting, and cross stitching which are all girl things to do. Don’t get me wrong though because boys can do them, too. However, no matter how girly or non-girly I am, I do want to do everything for God’s glory.

Me (holding Raggedy Andy) having a tea party with my sister.

Me being crazy wild with my brothers.

And just in case you wondered, all those pictures were from a long time ago, so I don't look like that any more. hehe!

Also, check out Noel Piper's traveling blog. http://www.tellmewhentopack.com/

Have a happy day in Jesus!

A day in the Life of Five Sisters

2011-08-13T20:51:00.000-04:00

Today is Saturday. It began like most any Saturday. We had a special breakfast of French Toast (usually it is good ol’ flapjacks, but today we had sumpin’ different) and we ran around tryin’ to get our morning chores done as quickly as possible. Then we headed for the great outdoors. It is one of our most favorite places to be. The only problem is, before long it began to rain, so what we gonna’ do about that? Well, we (my four sisters and I) are just going to go out anyway because rain won’t stop us. We decided to take a pleasant walk down our road. Ahhhh! Indeed! It was wonderful! We (well, maybe I should say I, for I refused to take a raincoat or umbrella) got plum soaked, but that wasn’t so bad. It is actually fun to play outside in the rain and get wet. Anybody that has done it, I’m sure knows what I’m talkin’ about. Then for Lunch we decided it was necessary to have a tea party, because…well…we didn’t want to get pneumonia (we weren’t really worried about that, but it was a good excuse), ya know? And drinkin’ a nice cup o’ hot tea is the best remedy, ya know. We also decided to have ourselves some good ol’ grilled cheese samiches. So we sat down for one of our unusual tea parties and had a right good time of it, too. Then for supper we had some good ol’ homemade pizza. That is one of our traditions. Almost every Saturday when we was youngins’ them big brothers of ours would make the pizza, but nows’ theys’ grown and out of the house we have to make it ourselves. So that about sums up a day in the life of us country gals of North Cakilac.

This is after we got back from our little walk in the rain.

Priscilla drinking out of a mug at the tea party

Lydia at the tea party

Me at the tea party

Bethany at the tea party

Elisabeth at the tea party

Good ol' homemade pizza for supper

How was your day? Did you do anything crazy or awesome or unique or silly? Well, I hope you had a great day no matter what.

God bless you!

This Old Song

2011-08-12T20:01:00.001-04:00

This Old Book

It is an old book,
It is the oldest book
It is hundreds and hundreds
And thousands of years old.
And men have said,
“Don’t believe that old book
It’s just old and full of stories
Out of date and almost dead.”

But men still read it,
They still believe it
They read verses and pages
And Chapters all the time.
After all these years
Other books come and go
But this one can touch the heart
And shake the world
When it is read.
When it is read, it wakes the dead!

And they get happy
And shout “Hallelujah, Amen!”
It sets ‘em free like jubilee
When they can see
what might have been.
And they sing
“Glory! Well I feel like liven’ again!”
It is good news
And they can choose
To loose the blues
And move to heaven.

It is an old book,
It is the oldest book
It has history and mystery
And won’t go away no matter what.
And men still say
“I believe that old book
It’s just as new and full of life
It gives me strength
Like it was bread.
It makes me wise,
And clears my eyes!”

Written by-Terry Everroad

I love that song. I wish you could hear it because it is so much fun to listen to when sung by the Everroad family.

Something that Makes me Smile (and Laugh)

2011-08-08T11:26:00.000-04:00

It is quite funny to watch my 6 year old sister try to teach herself how to ride a bike. Especially considering that the bike has two flat tires, a missing peddle, and a chain that needs greasing. (and very possibly other problems, too.)

Have a happy day and God bless you!

Live for Jesus!

Love one another!

Laugh a lot!

Make someone smile!

What Do You Think?

2011-07-28T16:19:00.001-04:00

Hello!
Do you like the new look on my blog? I hope you do, because I do and I don't have any plans of changing it back. hehehe! ;)

Have a happy day!

~Hannah~

Enjoyable Tasks

2011-07-28T15:31:00.000-04:00

This is Winnie the Pooh with Psalm 119:103 to go with it, that I cross stitched on to a bib.

Five young ladies sat down to quilt.

Laughing, chatting, or frowning with guilt.

One young lady messed up and all will see,

But just so you know, it wasn’t me.

(Or was it me.... ☺.)

Homemade pizza that my brother and sister made.

Have a happy day and God bless you!

Live for Jesus!

Love one another!

Laugh a lot!

Smile big!

Randoms!

2011-07-18T12:39:00.000-04:00

Just a couple random things. ;)

This lizard was just sitting in my sisters hair just like that and she didn't put it there either. It was the funniest thing.

Here is another picture of the lizard. It was a pretty small one.

I had made a Tie Skirt several years ago, but no one wanted to wear it, so my mom turned it into a Tie Dress for my youngest sister. It's so cute, isn't it?

And another picture of the Tie Dress.

Also a blog with encouraging lessons, from my mom, and wonderful activities.

http://thephdjournal.blogspot.com/

Have a happy day and God bless you!

Live for Jesus!

Love one another!

Laugh a lot!

Smile big! ☺

Random Stuff! ☺

2011-07-13T21:09:00.001-04:00

Things I Love…..

I love a six year-old’s smile when the front tooth is missing.
I love to make people laugh.
I love being a lefthander.
I love to make people smile.
I love my Savior.
I love to serve. (Well, except those times that I don’t, but then I am missing out on something big.)
I love the joy that comes from serving.
I love to make people happy.
I love to be a blessing and to know that I was a blessing.
I love holding babies, especially when they fall asleep in my arms.
I love riding horses.
I love to hear people laugh.
I love my family.
I love blogging.
I love comments. ;)

What do you love?

Blogs that I recommend you check out…..

http://leakes.wordpress.com/
http://www.girltalkhome.com/
http://www.feminagirls.com/

What blogs do you recommend I check out?

A convicting quote…

“If I can write an unkind letter, speak an unkind word, think an unkind thought without grief and shame, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” –Amy Carmichael-

What quote do you find convicting?

Some of my heroes…..

Robert E. Lee
Stonewall Jackson
David Brainard
Jonathan Goforth
Hudson Taylor
Elisabeth Elliot
Jesus Christ

Who are some of your heroes?

Staying Cool at a Pool, While Not a Fool!

2011-06-29T21:00:00.002-04:00

Summer is finally here! I just love summer. I love to run barefoot out in the woods; I love to feel the sun beating down on my face; I love to see the butterflies and bees come to suck nectar out of the flowers; I love to spray water at my sisters and get them soaking wet (That is, until they try to get me back and soak me. Hehehe! Actually to tell you the truth I usual enjoy it. Haha! ) All in all, summer is one of my favorite seasons of the year.

With the heat of summer comes the opening of pools. Pools are wonderful (at least for some people.). It’s wonderful to be able to get into a nice pool and get cooled from the scorching heat. Many people enjoy the recreation of swimming in the summer. Yet, we Christian girls must be on our guard. There is pressure all around us to dress just like all the other girls at a pool; to wear clothing that reveals more of you than is necessary or helpful. Yet, I beg of you not to fall for it. I have recently read some discussion from home school mom’s about whether or not a bikini is appropriate for there daughter to wear. So, for all the teenage girls who are tired of hearing from just their "old-fashioned" mom, I thought I would give the opinion of a 17 year old.
There will be those to tell you it’s ok to wear a bikini, because it is at a pool so what does it matter. But, no, wearing a bikini is not appropriate or ok! Have you ever even considered what you are doing when you wear a bikini? For starters, you are going out into public with what most of the time is considered under clothing, except when you go to the pool. Think how embarrassing you would be to go into a grocery store with only a bikini on. Yes, the way you dress at a pool is going to be different, yet I think as Christians we should do the best we can to cover up even at a pool. Furthermore, when you go to a pool dressed in a bikini you are inviting all the males there to have a delicious feast of the eyes on your body rather than see your beautiful face. You don’t really want that, do you? You don’t want to allow another man to look upon that which should only be for your husband’s (husband to be) eyes. Further more, you are causing your brothers in Christ to stumble; and you are treating your body, that God made to be pure and set apart for Him, as if it had no worth at all. Likewise, I exhort you, dear sisters in Christ, if you have any love for your brothers in Christ; if you have any love for the body that God gave you, that is not your own, but His, bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 6:19-20); if you have any love for your husband or future Husband; and if you have any love for your creator, then please join with me in not wearing a bikini or any bathing suit that would show more of you then would be a appropriate. If you are not sure what would be suitable then ask your father or a godly man in your life to help you know what would be good for swimming in.

Here are a couple guidelines that might be helpful:
1. Bikinis are never appropriate
2. Tummy showing is always a no, no.
3. How much of your leg can be seen? (I think a bathing suit with shorts or a skirt on the bottom is good.)
4. Don’t show cleavage. As one person put it, cleavage is only for your husband.

Where can you find a modest swim suit? Almost anywhere! You just have to search really well. I found mine at Kohl’s after much tedious searching in which I came to the conclusion that of all the kinds of shopping there is swimsuit shopping is my worst. Lands End has some good ones, too.

Let’s be a shining light for Christ. (Matthew 5:16)
By the way all of this was said in love, not hate. I just want girls to be aware of what they are actually doing when they dress in such a revealing way at a pool. Also I would add that just as it is wrong for a girl to dress immodestly, it is also wrong for a man to look at a girl and lust.
I hope you have been encouraged by all that I wrote and if you have any questions, encouragements or thoughts to add to this please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear what you have to say even if you disagree.
Here are a few links to some good posts on modesty.
http://www.feminagirls.com/2010/07/27/beach-treats/
http://www.feminagirls.com/2010/07/28/more-on-beach-wear/
http://kingsdaughterblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/why-modesty.html

My Flute Story

2011-06-18T17:28:00.000-04:00

Ever since I was very young I have wanted to learn to play the flute, but because they are expensive I thought it might be a while before that dream ever came true if ever. Nevertheless that did not hinder me from looking in every music magazine for a flute. Yet every time I looked the price was too high and I couldn’t afford it nor could my parents. Then I heard the clarinet and decided that I would like to play that in instead, although I really wanted to play both. Well, many years went by and still nothing happened. I really kind of thought that I would probably not be able to learn to play either until maybe I was married or something, yet I didn’t give up. Then it happened. Someone at our church found out that I was interested in playing the flute and she offered to buy it for me. After looking we found a used one for a great price, so we bought it. After getting it we discovered that it needed a good bit of work and that it would cost a good bit to get it fixed. Yet the lady that bought my flute said she would also pay for the repairs. So God blessed me with a flute. But, of course, if you want to play an instrument you have to learn and either teach yourself or get a teacher. Well, we have a wonderful friend who plays the flute beautifully, yet the only problem is she said she would never teach because she didn’t think she would make a good teacher. People, nothing is too hard for God. I just wanted to let you know that. So when our wonderful friend found out about my flute she offered to teach me. So I have now been enjoying the flute for about half a year and I absolutely love it. I am truly thankful first of all to God who made all of this possible. For if it hadn’t been for God’s grace then this would never have happened. I am also extremely thankful for the lady that bought my flute and the lady who teaches me flute.

Through this story I wanted to not only encourage you to trust God to provide, but to also persevere. I have heard that many people after getting to a certain age think they are too old to learn to play an instrument. Please don’t ever think that. I was seventeen before I could start learning the flute. Many people would think that they were too old by then, but that is not true. I may some day find out that I am wrong, but right now I think we shall never be too old to learn something new.

Have a happy day and God bless you!
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
Smile big!

Reminiscences of a Pencil

2011-06-02T20:58:00.000-04:00

That's not a very good picture, but those are some of my pencils. I like little pencils as you can see.

My Pencil Stub

You dear faithful old friend,

With you I wrote a letter to send.

With you I wrote some Poetry.

With you I wrote a sweet story.

You are now old and worn

For many hours of school you’ve borne.

Together you and I will make history

Together we unfold a mystery.

I used you every fleeting day

If only to pass the hour away.

I used you tall; I used you short.

I used you to write my oral report.

With you I wrote of days long past.

With you I wrote what happened last.

I used you when you were just a stub

You are my friend; you are my bub.

Live for Jesus!

Love one another!

Laugh a lot!

Smile big! ☺

There is Hope!

2011-05-23T20:45:00.002-04:00

It wasn’t a terrible storm, but it was note worthy. You see this storm had some powerful wind. Seriously! It made the night almost eerie with the way the wind was wooing and groaning and moaning and whistling. There were also some amazingly bright flashes of lightening and loud crashes of thunder. As I lay in bed listening I began to think about how powerful and amazing God is. At the same time I was also reminded of a poem that I had read in my literature written by Stephen Crane, a non-Christian. This is what he wrote,

A man said to the universe:

“Sir, I exist!”

“However,” replied the universe,

“The fact has not created in me

A sense of obligation.”

Basically what the poem is saying is that the universe or nature is in control and it does not care that man exists or not. It will do what ever it wants to man. It will treat man however harshly it wants to. Therefore, there is no hope for man because he is totally at the mercy of the universe and the universe doesn’t care.

Yet the truth is we do have hope in Christ Jesus. God is in control of all things even the universe and all of nature. He is in control of every thunder storm, every tornado, every hurricane, etc. He is the one who created it so don’t you think He can keep it under control? He has given us hope through His Son Jesus who He sent to this earth to pay the penalty for our sins. Therefore we do have hope. If we have a personal relationship with Christ as our Lord and Savior then we have that promise and hope which He gives to all those that believe in Him.

Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
and smile big! ☺

People!☺

2011-05-10T20:25:00.001-04:00

People! I just love people. People are so unique. Everyone is different. Everyone has a different personality, a different voice, a different look, etc. No two people are exactly alike. Every single person was uniquely fashioned by God and each person has their own special uniqueness. (I love that word unique.;) ) Wouldn’t it be so boring if everyone was the same? Wouldn’t it be disastrous if everyone was just like me or you? I am glad God made variety. I love it that everyone is different even the most identical twins there has ever been. I just love it! It makes life so much more exciting and colorful and unique and special and just simply wonderful. Isn’t God so creative? We have a great and awesome Creator.

Psalm 139:13-16
For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother's womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

Have a happy day and God bless you!
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
Smile big! ☺

Seven Miscellaneous Facts about Myself

2011-04-28T20:00:00.000-04:00

1. I am the only left-hander in a family of eleven. It makes life so much more exciting and adventurous for everyone☺. Anyone else in similar circumstances I’m sure will understand. ☺
2. I hate pretzels. (Unless they are covered in chocolate)
3. I am counter-cultural when culture is counter-God.
4. I was seventeen before I skied for my first time. I was scared to death and almost backed out, but I ended up really enjoying it. (My mom grew up skiing, but my Dad has still never skied himself.)
5. I am the first girl of the family (after four boys) and I am the first in my family that was born at home.
6. I love to do puzzles. (Jigsaw and manipulative)
7. My brother was on TV in China.

Well, that is just a tidbit about myself.
What about you? What are some miscellaneous facts about you? I would love to hear.

Have a happy day and God bless you!
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
and smile Big! ☺

Don't Fast God's Word!

2011-04-16T13:15:00.000-04:00

Dear Teens,

It is very sad to think how so few Christian teens, even those that have grown up in a Christian home, have read their whole Bible. Not only have many teens never read the whole Bible, but many teens don’t even read their Bible every day. To me that is very sad because if you really love Jesus you would want to be in His word every day and want to get to know Him better through His Word. The Bible is so important for us Christians. It tells us how we as Christians should live. It nurtures us. It is God speaking to us. It is God’s Holy Word to us. If we are not reading God’s Word every single day and not just certain parts, but the whole Bible then we can be easily deceived by other things that we read or hear because we don’t know the truth. The Bible is the most trusted book ever written. You can be certain that every thing the Bible says is true, because it is God’s Word and God is Truth, (John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”) so every thing he says is Truth. So please, teenagers, and every age for that matter, please, read your Bible every single day. Memorize God’s word and hide it in your heart. Read the whole Bible. If you have read the whole Bible, read it again and again and again. No matter how many times you have read the Bible you can always learn more. Don’t let Satan deceive you into thinking you don’t need to reads the Bible or that you have already read it enough. All of this is for myself as well, because I do not read the Bible or memorize God’s Word as much as I should. I believe we can all always do better in that area no matter how much we do it now. So whether you are one that reads your Bible every day or one that doesn’t; whether you are young or old; I hope that I have encouraged you to read it even more. Don’t ever think that you don’t have time, because no matter how bizarre your life is you have to make time for God’s word or else your life will be more bizarre than it is. Do you hear me! Do you understand what I am saying! Are you listening!

Joshua 22:5
“But take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God , to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul."

John 8:31-32
‘Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

1 Thessalonians 2:13
For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God , which also effectively works in you who believe.

Eph 6:14-17
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

Proverbs 3:1-4
My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart keep my commands; for length of days and long life and peace they will add to you. Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man.

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Have a happy day and God bless you!
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
And Smile big! ☺

Learn it Now!

2011-04-09T15:39:00.001-04:00

In an earlier post I stressed the importance of men learning to cook, especially those who are not married yet. Not only is it important to learn to cook (both men and women) before you get married but it is important to learn other practical life skills as well. In Joshua Harris’s book I Kissed Dating Goodbye he says the following (on page 175) about preparing for marriage some day.

“Practice practical life skills. What are practical life skills? Just ask your parents to let you take over the maintenance of your house- including shopping, planning menus, and cooking meals for a couple of month- you’ll soon find out.
While these sorts of skills aren’t glamorous, they are an important part of managing a household. We have no excuse for not preparing ourselves in this area. And the best preparation is actually doing it. A few years ago, my mom had me start doing all the grocery shopping for the family. I also had to cook one dinner each week. At first, I didn’t always cook the most appetizing meals for my family, but I got better!
Though I’ve improved my skills in the kitchen, I’m still woefully unprepared in the area of home maintenance. I’m sure you have your own weak spots too. Let’s get to work strengthening them!”

I hope you’re convinced more than ever now of the importance of men learning the skill of cooking before they’re married (if possible). (Women too! I realize that there are a lot of women these days who don’t know how to cook, or clean when they get married. Sometimes their husbands have to teach them how to cook even. Now that is just plain sad. )

Have a happy day and God bless you!
Live for Jesus! Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
Smile Big! ☺

The Bracelet and The Blessing

2011-04-02T17:20:00.000-04:00

The other day my sisters and I had gone out into a large logged area, which we call a desert. Well, as you can imagine it is quite messy, full of logs, mud, and ditches full of water, but it is fun to wander through any way. Some time after we got back home from the desert I realized that one of my bracelets was missing. It isn’t a really nice or fancy bracelet just a simple green one that came with a cd, but I loved the bracelet just the same. So I prayed that God would bless that I could find it, although it seemed very unlikely as it was probably in that deserted mess. Not only that, but a couple days passed before I was able to go back to look. Today we were finally able to go back, so of course, I had my eyes on the look out and I told everyone else to look too. After wandering through and searching and looking, I still had not found it and was giving up hope of ever seeing it again. Yet, Praise the Lord, we decided to go back to a place that we had already been that day, to show our Mom and Dad something. Low and behold, there on the ground was my bracelet. You can’t imagine how happy I was to see that bracelet. God loves His children and He loves to bless us in little ways. He blessed that I could find my bracelet that I had pretty much thought to be hopelessly lost. God hears our prayers even for the littlest things such as finding a bracelet. Although His answer or time to answer a prayer may not be the same as what we were hoping or thought, He knows what is best, so trust Him for He cares for you.

Have a happy day and God bless you!

Live for Jesus!

Love one another!

Laugh a lot!

☺And don't forget to smile Big!☺

☺ Do it all for Jesus With a Smile ☺

2011-03-26T13:52:00.001-04:00

Do All to the Glory of God

As you wipe the toilet seat
As you drink or as you eat

Or scrub the children’s dirty feet

Do all to the glory of God

As you scrub the kitchen floor

Or vacuum the carpet more and more

Or repair that squeaky door

Do all to the glory of God

As you talk to your dear friend

Or an eloquent letter you send

Or the pants, you try to mend

Do all to the glory of God

As you cook the midday meal

A bunch o’ taters you got to peel

Or for bed time prayer you kneel

Do all to the glory of God

As you comfort a crying baby

Or help a sweet older lady

Or fall and scrape your knee

Do all to the glory of God

As you study your Grammar

To be an expert diagrammer

Though these things lack glamour

Do all to the glory of God

Written by- Hannah

March 23, 2011

Special Thanks to my Dad who critiqued my poem and gave me good suggestions for improving it. Also to my Mom who unknowingly inspired me to write it.

Have a happy day and God bless you! ☺
Live for Jesus!
Love one another!
Laugh a lot!
Smile big! ☺
And don’t forget, Jesus loves you! ☺

☺ ☺ I am absolutely delighted with these smilie faces. ☺☺

My Big Brothers

2011-03-23T20:48:00.001-04:00

Well, I said that I would write about my brothers sometime so now I have to. For starters; brothers are the most annoying thing ever invented. They are always annoying their little sisters and they’ll do anything to make their little sisters cry. They’re always teasing and aggravating us girls. They never did learn to sit still and they are always picking up and playing with anything that is in their reach. And if their sisters are cooking something (especially something sweet), then guess what, they come in to get lots of licks, but they don’t even help clean up. They drive me nuts! I think they’re nuts themselves.

Ok, I’m just kidding about all of that (uh, sort of :) ). The truth is, I love my big brothers no matter how many times they tease or annoy me (and trust me with four older brothers I got a lot of that when I was younger). Now I said I was just kidding about the above, but actually in some ways I wasn’t. Because you see they really did enjoy teasing and aggravating us girls, but as I got older I learned to enjoy their teasing so it ended up being just as fun for me as for them. Also my brothers (and some more then others) did have a hard time sitting in one place for a long period of time and they did have a tendency to play with anything in their reach, but most of the time that didn’t (and doesn’t) bother me (except when they pick up something of mine and then absentmindedly put it in a totally different place so I can’t find it or when they end up breaking something of mine). And of course they did enjoy licking while we (or they) cooked things and they didn’t usually offer to help clean up either. Of course, they said they were helping by trying the batter or what ever it was, to make sure it wasn’t “poisonous”, not only that, but we girls enjoy doing that, too, so we can’t get too mad at them for that, can we. And, yes, I can’t deny that they have driven me crazy at times, but that would have been my own problem not theirs. And, no, I do not think they are nuts, they are actually all geniuses.

Now that my brothers have all gone off to college (except one who is in heaven) I have learned to love and appreciate my brothers even more. It is always exciting to hear from one of our brothers and even more exciting if they are coming home to visit. Now that is when there is jubilee in our house! We also love to hear all their adventurous stories. The only problem is they don’t tell us the most exciting half of the story, which is the part we would most like to here. Yet my oldest brother, while talking to my mom, gave this reason for not telling, “You are best off not knowing all the details of your crazy three son's lives lest you worry way too much and get no rest”. So you see they are being very loving in making sure they don’t scare their mother too badly. To all the moms that may be reading this, you can be thankful that your sons don’t tell you the worst (and you can be certain they don’t) of their college-life-adventures.

So the end of the story is; big brothers are absolutely amazing (and I would say little brothers, too, but the only problem is I don’t have any little brothers, although, you can be sure that my sisters and I would love to have one).

Have a happy day and God bless you! :)
Live for Jesus.
Love one another.
Laugh a lot.
Smile big! :)

The Family Behind the House

2011-03-12T20:03:00.000-05:00

Have you ever wondered what kind of people lived in the old broken down and deserted houses you see on the side of the road. Have you ever wondered what the story is behind those houses? I have, many times. That is the reason why I love old houses because I know that they have a story behind them even if I don’t know what that story is.

I always think; were they a happy family? Was their home filled with the joy of the Lord? Or was it a home full of anger and bitterness and strife? I always hope that it wasn’t that kind of family. Then I wonder; was it a family of poverty? Did they just barely have enough to get by? Or was it a wealthy family and own everything imaginable? Did they have a family member die and bring sorrow to the house? Was it an older couple that lived here? Did they know the love of Christ like I do? Did they own slaves? If so did they treat them cruelly or kindly? Did a big happy laughing family live there? Were there children running around in the back yard at one time? I don’t know the answer to any of these questions, but I always wonder about it. I do hope that some day I will meet some of these families in heaven then I can hear the story behind these houses that I see so desolate and deserted.

Have a happy day and God bless you!

No Friend Like a Sister

2011-03-02T18:19:00.005-05:00

Sisters are just wonderful. It is even more wonderful when you have four of them. I love each one of them. (I love each one of my brothers, too. Brothers are amazing and it makes five sisters very lonely when all of their four amazing big brothers leave the home.) We have so much fun together. I am so thankful to God that he gave me four sisters (and brothers, but this post isn’t supposed to be about my brothers. Maybe I’ll do another post about my brothers.) My sisters make me smile. My sisters make me laugh. My sisters entertain me. My sisters are my best friends. We cook together. we talk together (a lot. What can I say? We are girls you know.). We laugh together. We love each other. Of course, we do have our little squabbles here and there to be sure, but who can stay mad at their sisters? Not us.
Do you have sisters? If you do, treasure every moment that you have with them.

We cook together

We love each other

We look like each other ( uh! Maybe.)

The Awful Waffles That Weren’t so Awful After All

2011-02-19T15:22:00.005-05:00

Today we got to make waffles for the first time and my, what an experience that was.
Here is the story as it unfolds. The batter is made, however, it seems rather lumpy and thick, yet some are saying that is how it is suppose to be. So we pour some batter into the waffle maker and after much difficulty spreading it around (Mistake number one) we closed the lid. Oh, dear it is steaming. What do we do? I think we better check it. Up goes the lid. Mistake number two. Woops! It isn’t done and now it is on the top and bottom. So we close the lid and find out how long it is suppose to take. When we finally think it is done we open it up again, but it is no simple task to get both sides clear of waffles. Bit by bit we get it off, yet it can barely land on the waffle plate before someone has seized it to eat. Yummmmy! Although this first batch may look and sound like a catastrophe it really actually turned out quite tasty and now for the next batch. We have all ready added some milk and stirred it better to make it more like waffle batter, and now for trying it out. Aww! It turned out much better, but still stuck a little bit. Then mom comes along to do a batch. She sprays on plenty of grease and pours on the batter. It seems to be a lot, but there isn’t much we can do about that. A little while later as it is cooking we noticed that the lid had risen a little. Woops! Maybe it was too much batter, but no it turned out perfect. We then decided that if the lid rose a little then that would be ok. We didn’t have any more mishaps, but definitely learned a thing or two about making waffles.

For any first-time-waffle-makers out there, here are a couple tips.
1. Make sure the batter isn’t too lumpy or thick. It needs to be able to pour on to the pan easily.
2. Don’t open the lid until it is done. We had to cook ours for about 9 minutes, but yours might say other wise. Another way to know if it is done is if there isn’t so much steam coming up.

Here are some pictures.

A picture of the pan after the first batch. This is after we got most of it off, so just imagine the whole pan, both sides, looking like this. :)

Some of the first batch after getting it off the pan.

And the other side

Aww! perfect! With homemade blueberry topping!

And some more perfect ones! :)

Men Need to Cook, Too!

2011-02-15T15:03:00.005-05:00

My first post, about modesty, was specifically for females. Well, this post is specifically for males.

Cooking is not just for girls. Every man should know how to cook. He doesn’t have to be an expert. He just needs to know the basics of cooking and if he wants to go beyond that then that is great. Now you may be asking, “So why should every man know how to cook? I have a wife or mother or sister to cook for me. I don’t need to cook.” Well, I have lots of good reasons.
For one it can be a huge blessing to your mother. All four of my brothers learned to cook and I can’t begin to tell you how helpful they have been. For instance there have been times when my mom was sick and couldn’t cook, but since my brothers knew how to cook they were able to make the meal. Also if you have read the story about my brother, Micah, then you would understand that there were many days that my Mom wasn’t home to cook the meal. So my brothers, knowing how to cook, were able to fix dinners for us, and my Mom didn’t have to worry about us children or her husband going hungry.
Secondly, someday you will most likely go off to college, and knowing how to cook and make your own meals can save you a lot of money. You will also not have to depend on fatty fast-foods and such.
Thirdly, when you are married it can always come in handy to give your wife a break and make the dinner or some other meal for her. I am sure she would be absolutely delighted. (That is if you make it right and don’t burn it. Hehe! ) Not only that, but some day it may even be necessary. Take for example if your wife has just had a baby then you can’t expect her to get out of bed and make you a meal. If you knew how to cook then it would save the day for you and her. Or maybe she had to go somewhere and she doesn’t get home in time to make the meal. If you know how to cook then you can have a fresh home cooked meal ready for her and you when she gets home. Or maybe she is just worn out and needs a rest after taking care of the children all day. So you see there are many good reasons for a husband to know how to cook.
Now I know you may not like to think about this one, but it doesn’t erase the fact that it could happen. What about if your wife dies before you? Then who will cook for you? If you know how to cook then you won’t have to worry about going to restaurants for every meal and wasting your money on all the fatty foods. You won’t have to worry about going from fresh yummy home cooked meals to bland old store-bought foods. You won’t have to worry about what to do when your children or grandchildren come home to visit. Not only that, but if you know how to cook then your home won’t become just a house, because there will still be those home cooked meals.
Have I convinced you yet? I hope so, but just in case you’re still not sure I’ll share with you some of the delights and blessings of having brothers or a father that knows how to cook.
All my brothers were born first, and then came me and my sisters. So when all of my brothers were still home they did more cooking then we girls did. One thing they used to do for us on Saturdays was make pancakes for us. I tell you what; my brothers knew how to make some fabulous pancakes. Not only that, but if we didn’t have any syrup then they would just make the syrup. (My sisters and I have still not learned how to make syrup without it crystallizing.) In fact they made home-made syrup so much that one time when my mom got some syrup from the store we older ones hated it and would give tons to the younger ones to get rid of it quicker. :) Sometimes my brothers would even do a surprise for my Mom and Dad. My brothers would make the pancakes before our parents got up and then we would bring them there breakfast when they were still in bed.
Another thing my brothers had a special skill in making was pizza. Almost every Saturday for dinner they would make pizza for us. And let me just tell you; they knew how to make some first-rate pizza, if I ever had it. In fact my oldest brother Jesse, who was usually the main cook, now works at a pizza place.
Sometimes my brothers would just be making their own breakfast or lunch meal, but it would look so good to us girls that we would beg for them to make some for us, too. Or sometimes it would be too much. Yet if we were the blessed one standing near by then we would get the pleasure of eating the rest of it for them.
My Dad knows how to cook as well. Now he doesn’t cook quite as much as my brothers did, but I have heard stories of when he and my mom first got married. I have been told that he made some pretty amazing meals for my Mom and himself. He also prepares his own lunch meal for the work days (Usually leftovers from the night before. :) ). When I was younger he used to take cheese sandwiches to work a lot and my sisters and I used to crowd around and watch him make it. Especially if he was using cheddar cheese, cause then he would give us a little bit of cheese to “try”. :)
So you see it has been a true joy and blessing for both, my mom, and my sisters and I to have brothers who cook.

Note to Mothers: Mothers, please, teach your sons to cook. I’m sure you won’t regret it. :)

Happy Valentines Day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

2011-02-14T16:01:00.001-05:00

Happy Valentines Day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love my family! Each one of them is so very special to me.

1 John 4:7-11
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

Have a wonderful day. God bless you!

Large-family Recipe

2011-02-10T16:34:00.000-05:00

Do you need a recipe that will feed a large family or group? Here is the perfect one! Enjoy! :)

Elephant Stew

1 medium sized elephant
6 barrels of water
2 rabbits (optional)
salt and pepper

Cut the elephant into bite-sized pieces. Add enough water to cover. Cook over a kerosene fire five weeks at 465 degrees. This will serve 3,850 people. If more guests are expected, the two rabbits may be added. Add the rabbits only in an emergency, however, as most people object to hare in their stew.

Linda's recipe from the cook book 'Bread from Heaven'.

The Chore That's Not a Bore

2011-01-29T12:08:00.000-05:00

The Dishwasher

There on the counter is a line
Of dishes, grimy, greasy, and cheesy.
Seeing them all makes me queasy,
But I’ll face it and say, “That’s just fine.”

I roll up my sleeves
And straighten my shoulders
And then the frown leaves
And I turn on the waters.

I grab a greasy, cheesy dish
And into the water. Swish! Swish!
I scrub, scrub, scrubby, dub,
And rub, rub, ruby, rub.

I grab another off the stack,
As I place the clean one on the rack.
A smile I do not lack,
For washing dishes is my knack.

No matter how many I have to wash.
Like Madeline, I just say, “Pishposh!”
I sing a song as I clean a tong
Although sometimes the notes go wrong.

I kind of like washing dishes.
I like it much better than washing fishes.
Oh, don’t you wish you had my chore.
It’s always fun and never a bore.

Oh, I’m the dishwasher girl.
I scrub them in a whirl.
Oh, I’m the dishwasher girl.
I’ll dance and twirl.

Written By- Hannah

Happy or Mad

2011-01-22T13:33:00.000-05:00

Many times we think we are bored or unhappy because of our circumstances, but our circumstance has nothing to do with it. It all depends on the attitude we have and the way that we look at our circumstances. We can either find joy in vacuuming, doing school, or sitting in the car for hours with nothing to do or we can think it boring or get mad about it. Which do you choose this day? How are you going to look at life? I think it so humorous that we sometimes just choose to be mad or grumpy when we could be rejoicing and having a great time. Yet I do this very thing so often.
God calls us to be joyful. He wants us to be happy. How can we serve God when we are not happy? The truth is we can’t. If we are not obeying God by being happy then we are not serving Him.

1 Peter 4:12-13
Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.

1 Thessalonians 5:16
Rejoice always,

Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

Psalm 2:11
Serve the Lord with fear,
And rejoice with trembling.

Psalm 97:12
Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.

Psalm 100:2
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.

Psalm 119:71
It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
That I may learn Your statutes.

I hope you have been encouraged. God bless you!

A Midwestern Poem

2011-01-14T19:56:00.000-05:00

Here is a poem by James Whitcomb Riley that I read in my literature today. I really liked it so I thought I would share it with you. I hope you enjoy it, too. God bless you!

WHEN THE FROST IS ON THE PUNKIN

WHEN the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock,
And you hear the kyouck and gobble of the struttin' turkey-cock,
And the clackin' of the guineys, and the cluckin' of the hens,
And the rooster's hallylooyer as he tiptoes on the fence;
O, it's then's the times a feller is a-feelin' at his best,
With the risin' sun to greet him from a night of peaceful rest,
As he leaves the house, bareheaded, and goes out to feed the stock,
When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock.

They's something kindo' harty-like about the atmusfere
When the heat of summer's over and the coolin' fall is here--
Of course we miss the flowers, and the blossums on the trees,
And the mumble of the hummin'-birds and buzzin' of the bees;
But the air's so appetizin'; and the landscape through the haze
Of a crisp and sunny morning of the airly autumn days
Is a pictur' that no painter has the colorin' to mock--
When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock.

The husky, rusty russel of the tossels of the corn,
And the raspin' of the tangled leaves, as golden as the morn;
The stubble in the furries--kindo' lonesome-like, but still
A-preachin' sermuns to us of the barns they growed to fill;
The strawstack in the medder, and the reaper in the shed;
The hosses in theyr stalls below--the clover over-head!--
O, it sets my hart a-clickin' like the tickin' of a clock,
When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock!

Then your apples all is gethered, and the ones a feller keeps
Is poured around the celler-floor in red and yeller heaps;
And your cider-makin' 's over, and your wimmern-folks is through
With their mince and apple-butter, and theyr souse and saussage, too! ...
I don't know how to tell it--but ef sich a thing could be
As the Angels wantin' boardin', and they'd call around on me--
I'd want to 'commodate 'em--all the whole-indurin' flock--
When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock!

by: James Whitcomb Riley (1849-1916)

Complain About My Blessings?

2011-01-05T18:24:00.000-05:00

The other day I was thinking about how much I complain, yet how grateful I ought to be. I have been blessed with so much in so many ways. I have a nice house to live in; I can have three meals a day; I have a Christian family; I can read and write and get an education; I live in a country where I can freely worship my Savior; and so much more. Yet there are people in this world who don’t have any of that. They not only do not have that, but they could be suffering persecution or natural disaster or something else. Often I don’t even think about or pray for these people who are suffering so much. I am instead sitting in a comfortable home complaining about all that God has blessed me with. What an ungrateful wretch I am. So whenever I feel like grumbling or complaining, I resolve instead to change it into thanksgiving for all I have and prayer for those who don’t have that which I do. So help me God.

The Micah Series (part 4)

2010-12-27T15:55:00.000-05:00

Here is a song that Micah wrote.

Deep Inside

You already know what you've meant to me
You know more then I of my thoughts of you
But let me try now to express my love
To pour out my heart with the limit of words

The comfort you've given is beyond my song
And tell of your mercy its worthless to try
To express how you've loved me I'd run out of time
If there's words that can tell you they're above my mind

Chorus:
So I'll love You from deep inside
The most precious of thoughts in my heart will hide
So whenever you look at my heart
You'll see a fullness of love that won't depart

What can I say of the peace that crushed doubt
And the grace I've received is past finding out
Since when You called me to enter your rest
My heart has to speak cause my mouth can't express

You're a mystery to me that I cannot solve
An unsearchable tower that will never fall
The highest below and the lowest above
Will never attain the knowledge of your love

By Micah Leake, age 15 (Dec.22, 1989-Dec.17, 2005)

The Micah Series (part 3)

2010-12-22T13:13:00.000-05:00

The Character of a Gentleman

Although Micah was by no means a perfect man, he did have some wonderful character traits.
I will start with humor. Micah had an amazing sense of humor. Micah could make things that for most people would seem boring or painful into an enjoyable and even amusing scenario. If someone was gloomy or having a bad day he always knew how to cheer them up even if he wasn’t feeling well himself. He was great at telling jokes. When everyone else was roaring with laughter he would just keep a genuinely serious face, yet you could tell that his joke got the effect that he was looking for.
He loved to serve God and others. He was always looking for ways to serve and be a blessing. At one point when he was sick, he wasn’t allowed to do certain jobs, so instead he would just go find something else that he could do even if no one had asked him to do it. He would often go out of his way to help someone.
He loved to worship God. One of his most favorite things to do was play his guitar and sing. He wrote several songs in his life time and he was an excellent guitar player.
He hardly ever complained. He was just a cheerful and thankful brother full of the joy of the Lord.
He loved God more then anything else. Especially near the end of his life all he really wanted to do was read his Bible and pray. When God called him home he was ready and eager to go.
Today, December 22, 2010, Micah would be turning 21 and Lydia turned 6. Happy birthday Micah and Lydia!
Here are some pictures of Micah and Lydia. You can tell by some of the funny faces Micah made that he had a good sense of humor.

The Micah Series (Part 2)

2010-12-17T11:29:00.000-05:00

God’s Grace in or Lives

Today, December 17, 2010, is five years since Micah has gone home to be with the Lord. I would like to share with you some things that my family and I have learned through and after his sickness.
Through the four years that Micah was sick my whole family learned a lot about just trusting the Lord. We had to learn to trust Him for everything. My dad had lost his job in the second year of Micah’s sickness, so we had to trust God for provision. God never forgot us though. We always had enough. Our church was always there for us ready to help in any way they could. The gifts that we received from our church and other people were abundant. The meals that were brought over were numerous and there was always someone to help or baby-sit if we needed it. God used this time in our life to strength and build up our faith and walk with Him. We had to trust God about Micah. We had to trust Him that He knew exactly how long Micah should live and that He knows what is best for us.
What did I learn? For one thing I learned to trust God more. During and after Micah’s sickness God taught (and still is teaching) me that He knows what is best for me. All that God does is for my good even if I don’t know why. I learned that God will give me the grace to go through whatever He calls me to go through no matter how hard it is.

Job 1:21
…"The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the Lord."

The Micah Series (part 1)

2010-12-07T13:40:00.000-05:00

The Story

Micah, my third oldest brother, was born December 22, 1989.
It all began on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 2001. Micah was climbing down from a tree and grabbed hold of a dead branch and fell 20 feet. He was still alive but in great pain. So he was taken to the hospital, where they found out he had a broken femur, torn spleen, hole in his lungs, and fractured vertebrae. He was in intensive care for six days, and then transferred to a different hospital where they put a rod into his leg and found out that he had ALL leukemia. Micah then started chemotherapy and had treatment that lasted two and a half years. He had to be at the hospital most everyday of the first four months, meaning my oldest brother, Jesse, who was only fifteen at the time, had to watch six children while my mom was with Micah and Dad at work. After about one and a half years he took mostly pills and didn’t have to go to the hospital as much. When two and a half years had past they took out his port and finished his treatment, but then he relapsed. It was then decided that Micah would have to have a Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT). Each one of us children was tested to see if any of us was a perfect match. It turns out that my sister, Priscilla, who was only nine at the time, was a perfect match and actually really wanted to be the donor. Also at this time my mom was pregnant with her ninth child which was due in December 2004. To do the BMT he had to be transferred to Duke Hospital, which meant that we would have to move to be closer to the hospital. A couple months before moving into our contemporary cottage, Lydia, my now five year old sister was born on December 22, 2004, the same day that Micah had been born. Not only that, but they had kept her cord blood and found out later that she was a perfect match, as well. After the BMT Micah began to recover and we were able to move back home, but he relapsed again. They thought that they might be able to do another transplant with Lydia’s cord blood, but that was not God’s plan for his life. The leukemia progressed quickly and they soon said there was nothing more they could do. Either God would do a miracle in his body and heal him here on this earth or God would take him home to be with Him. On December 17, 2005, just five days before his sixteenth birthday and Lydia’s first, Micah was taken home to be with the Lord, where he so longed to be. Although we miss him dreadfully at times we know he is in a better place. He is at home safely in the arms of Jesus. Micah has no more pain, sorrow, suffering, sin, or sadness and we will someday go and join him there.

The Micah Series (Introduction)

2010-12-02T15:27:00.000-05:00

I would like to tell you about an extraordinary young man. His name is Micah and he is my third oldest brother, who died almost 5 years ago. Before I tell you about him though, I would like to tell you why I am going to tell you about him.
First I hope that all those who read his story may be blessed greatly by it and be encouraged and comforted through it. I pray that even though my brother, Micah, has now been in heaven for about 5 years, that his life story may touch the lives of many and bring many people to Christ. I pray that when you read his story and all that I write about him, that you would be pointed to Christ and the cross and that you would see an amazing and powerful God.
I will be sharing about Micah all this December. I hope you will enjoy all that you read or see, and be pointed to Christ and His irresistible grace.
God bless you!

Give Thanks

2010-11-23T14:18:00.000-05:00

I thought that since Thanksgiving is coming up I would say some things I am thankful for. I am very thankful the Christian parents that God has blessed me with. I am thankful for all the brothers and sisters God has given me. I am thankful for all those who stop by and visit my blog (that means you). I am thankful for all the friends that God has blessed me with. I am most thankful, though, for God sending his only son, Jesus, to die on the cross for my sins, so that I could have eternal life. Thank you, God, for saving me. How about you? What are you thankful for?

Here is one of our favorite dishes for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is a recipe from a friend.

Sweet Potato Casserole Delight

3 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup sugar
½ cup milk
¼ cup butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon salt

Topping:
½ stick butter
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped nuts

Mix together well and pour into a buttered 13x9” baking dish. For topping, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar. Add flour and nuts and mix well. Sprinkle over potato mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Just to Let You Know

2010-11-22T13:34:00.000-05:00

This day nine years ago, November 22, Thursday, 2001, on Thanksgiving Day my whole family’s lives were changed dramatically for life. If you are interested in hearing what happened then and all after that then please come back to this blog in December. I will be doing a series on that which changed our lives.

Also I just thought I would let you know that my Mom, sisters, and I have started a blog in which you will see thoughts from all of us. There is not much there right now, but the last post, by my sister, Priscilla, was very good and I thought you might like to read it.
Have a wonderful week. God bless you!

Laughter

2010-11-13T13:06:00.000-05:00

Hello! It has been a while since I've posted, so here is a new post.
Laughter is one of my most favorite sounds. I love to here the gurgling laughter of a baby, the giggles of a girl, or the roaring laughter of a man. There are many different kinds of laughter. Some are high pitched, some are deep; some are quite, some are loud. I love every kind (except the evil or mean laugh, which I am not talking about). When I hear someone laugh it makes me want to laugh, too. Laughter is a sign of joy and when I hear laughter it fills me with joy. May you be filled with the joy of the Lord this day. God bless you!

“Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
And our tongue with singing.
Then they said among the nations,
"The Lord has done great things for them."
The Lord has done great things for us,
And we are glad.” Psalm 126:2-3

“A merry heart does good, like medicine ,
But a broken spirit dries the bones.” Proverbs 17: 22

Amazing Bread Recipe

2010-10-14T14:26:00.000-04:00

Best-Ever Yeast Rolls

2 packages dry yeast (2 Tbsp.)
2/3 sugar, divided
1 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1 tsp. salt
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
½ cup shortening
1 cup boiling water
2 eggs, beaten
6-7 cups all-purpose flour, divided
Dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in 1 cup warm water; let stand about 5 minutes.
Combine remaining sugar, salt, butter, and shortening in a large bowl. Add boiling water, stirring until butter and shortening melt. Cool slightly. Add dissolved yeast, stirring well. Add eggs and 3 cups flour, beating at medium speed of an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees), free from drafts, 1-1 ½ hours or until doubled in bulk.
Punch dough down; turn dough out onto a well-floured surface, and knead several times. Shape into 2-inch balls, and place in 3 greased 9-inch round pans. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees) free from drafts, 30-40 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Bake at 325 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Yield: 3 dozen. Enjoy!

Homemaking

2010-10-06T20:00:00.000-04:00

I have been reading through a book called Passionate Housewives Desperate for God by Jennie Chancey and Stacy McDonald. No, I’m not a wife right now, but some day I might be, so it will help me be better equipped. It is also helpful for right now. Here is a small portion that I thought was really good.

“You see, homemaking isn’t about the house itself or the things it contains. Being keepers at home is about focusing upon the Lord in all the everydayness so that our houses become centers of hospitality, forgiveness, training, business, welfare, charity, shared mourning and celebration, and- oh, yes- lots of tracked in mud, crumbs under the chairs, and everything else that goes with human beings. We must not lose sight of the fact that our homes are God-given tools to bless others. They aren’t the end goal; they are, simply, one of the means to the end. And what is the end? Dying to self, laying down our lives, serving others that Christ may grow His kingdom and transform the world and ourselves as we do things His way…” (page 94)
“..Here is where we must recover Biblical sanity. At its heart, homemaking is about accepting God’s word and laying down our lives for the brethren. It is about keeping our eyes firmly fixed upon Christ, Who calls us to serve Him in the seemingly insignificant tasks of everyday living, training the next generation, reaching out to the needy, demonstrating hospitality to saints and strangers, and living for Christ’s ‘well done’ rather then the praise and recognition of others.”
“And that’s the secret to a happy and blessed life. Die to live. Go last to be first. Give to receive. Make yourself least to be greatest. Homemakers? God created women to fulfill this unique role. That’s all we need to know to rest in our callings. We can trust Him to conquer the world, one heart at a time, as we live sacrificially and rejoice in his narrow way.” (page 98)

I hope you have been blessed or encouraged by this small portion of the book. If you haven’t read the book yet, then you should because so far it has been great. Also my Mom read the book and I think she thought it was good, too, and if she thought it was good, then it must be. Right? :)

Stand Up For What is Right

2010-10-01T15:07:00.000-04:00

I would encourage you to watch this. It is very good.

When You Smile

2010-09-25T15:12:00.000-04:00

When you smile

When I see a smile,
It makes me smile, too.
And when I smile,
I pass it on to you.
When you see me smile,
Please pass that smile on.
Cause everyone needs a smile,
Starting at the break of dawn.
Cause one little smile,
Can go farther then you know.
And one little smile,
Can comfort a heart of sorrow.
Just one little smile,
Can bring joy to another.
And one little smile,
Can encourage your brother.

by Hannah (me)

I hope you enjoyed reading that poem. Have a wonderful day!

Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace."

Very serious Questions

2010-09-15T20:10:00.000-04:00

Well, actually the questions are not really that serious, but I would love to hear your answers.
1. What is your favorite animal?
2. What is your favorite color?
3. What is your favorite movie?
4. What is your favorite cereal and why?
5. What is your favorite pie?
6. What is your favorite band or singer?
7. What is your favorite book in the Bible?
8. What is your favorite subject in school?
9. What do like to do in your spare time?
10. What is your favorite instrument?

Here are my answers
1. Horses
2. Blue (I am blue crazy)
3. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (If you haven’t watched it yet then you definitely should)
4. Granola or honey Crunch. They are both very good and tasty and sweet. Granola is great just eating it by itself and Honey Crunch has the perfect mixture, but I guess I would have to admit that I like Granola better.
5. Apple Pie probably, but I also really liked heavenly pie* (I haven’t had Heavenly Pie since last Thanksgiving though and I happened to have been sick then, so I thought that I wasn’t going to like any kind of pie again, but as you see, I still like Apple Pie and I haven’t found out yet if I still like Heavenly Pie or not. That is why I am not sure about that one. Oh, and one last thing about Heavenly Pie, it is actually not really Heavenly Pie unless you leave out the nuts. Alright, you may think there is no such thing, but I’m sure that if the nuts were left out of Heavenly Pie then it would make it truly “heavenly”. Nothing is “heavenly” that has nuts in it and I’m sure everyone will agree with me about that. Right? )
6. Casting Crowns, By the Tree, or Caedmons Call (I like them all a lot, so I’m really not sure)
7. That is a hard question, too, but I really like the Psalms and Proverbs, I also like 1 John
8. To be honest I’m really not sure that I have one right now, but I’ll go with Math
9. I like to be outside, play with my sisters, and cook, and a lot more.
10. I love the bagpipe, I also like the flute

*My Mom told me that the real name for Heavenly Pie is actually Devils Pie (I suppose because it has nuts in it. lol), but she changed the name to Heavenly Pie. Also to any who don’t know what Heavenly Pie tastes like, it tastes kind of like Pecan Pie except that it has chocolate chips in it.

So I hope you have enjoyed reading my answers and I’m looking forward to reading yours.
God bless you!

True Fellowship

2010-08-25T16:11:00.000-04:00

"Fellowship? I get fellowship all the time."
So often we get so caught up with busyness that we have no time for fellowship. Now you may be thinking that you get tons of fellowship, because you go to church on Sunday, then you have a home school group to go to on Monday and a Bible study on Tuesday and basketball practice on Wednesday etc. and of course you talk to tons of people at each of these occasions (that was just an example). Sure you may have time to talk to your friends at the places you go to each week, but I’m not talking about that kind of fellowship. I’m talking about Biblical fellowship, relaxing fellowship, fellowship where you really get to know someone better, fellowship with the body of Christ where you can encourage and build each other up.
We as believers in Christ need to be encouraging each other in our walk with God.
“Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11
“Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all.” 1 Thessalonians 5:14
“Imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.” 2 Corinthians 8:4
We should be comforting each other.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
“That there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it;...” 1 Corinthians 12:25-26
We should be rejoicing with each other.
“…or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.” 1 Corinthians 12:26
We should love one another.
“Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” Romans 13:10.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” 1 John 4:7.
“We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other,” 1 Thessalonians 1:3
We should be serving each other.
“For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Galatians 5:13
We should help each other and give to each other.
“Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share,” 1 Timothy 6:18
“That in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.” 2 Corinthians 8:2-4
The Bible tells us in so many places to encourage, help, love, comfort each other etc., yet how do we do that if we aren’t having fellowship with each other. How do we do it if our lives are so busy that we don’t have time to invite a family over, cook a meal for a new mother, help an elderly couple with some of there yard work, comfort or rejoice with a friend, build family relationships (Spending time with your family is also very important fellowship), give to a needy family and so much more.
Therefore, I think it is time that we slow down. Don’t try to put so many things into your schedule that you have no room for real Biblical fellowship. Make sure that you leave room in your schedule to invite families over, go have a cup of coffee (or tea or hot chocolate, or water if you would rather) with a friend, help a needy neighbor, or just spend time with your family.
My final word is to relax, don’t rush, and let us build each other up in love. God bless you!

“But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. And above all things have fervent love for one another, for "love will cover a multitude of sins." Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 1 Peter 4:7-11

Note: to any that have read to the end, please leave a comment and let me know what you think about this particular topic and what I wrote. Thank you very much!

Favorite Books

2010-08-12T14:49:00.000-04:00

Hello Everyone who reads this,
I would like to know of some good Christian books to read, so I thought I would ask about it on my blog. Therefore, I have some Questions for you and here they are.

1. What is your favorite spiritual book that you have ever read?
2. What is your favorite fiction that you have ever read?
3. What is your favorite biography or true story that you have ever read?
4. What is your favorite missionary biography that you have ever read?
5. Who are your three favorite authors?

I would love to hear your answers to these questions, and it doesn’t really have to be your “favorite ever read book” just one that you really liked. And now I shall attempt to answer the questions myself for anyone who may be interested.

1. Favorite spiritual book – Dug Down deep by Joshua Harris
2. Favorite fiction book – They Loved to Laugh by Katheryn Worth
3. Favorite biography – We Thought We Heard the Angels Sing by Lieutenant James C. Whittaker
4. Favorite missionary biography book – An Open Door in China (Jonathan Goforth) by Janet and Geoff Benge
5. Three favorite authors – Lori Wick, Louisa May Alcott, Carolyn Mahaney

Also this post is a “forever post” that means that even if it has been years since I have posted it, I would still love to hear your answers to these questions. Thank you very much!
I hope you are have a wonderful day. God bless you!

True Friends

2010-07-28T15:37:00.000-04:00

There are many types of friends. There are weird friends, cool friends, false friends, best friends and friends that are just friends. Most people have these kinds of friends or have had these kinds of friends in the past, but I’m going to tell you about the best kind of friend, the kind of friend that isn’t very common, but if you have this kind of friend then you always will. This kind of friend is called the true friend.
A true friend won’t desert you. When you get in trouble and every one else decides to desert you, you’ll still have this friend. When you’re going through hard times this friend will still be there to encourage you. When you need help your friend will be ready to help you. A true friend will not desert you no matter what happens.
A true friend will build you up not tear you down. This friend will encourage you to do what is right when the world is pressuring you to do the opposite. This friend will pray for you. This friend will not spread gossip or lies about you. A true friend will only want to say or do things that help you not tear down or ruin you.
A true friend is always there for you. When you are happy they rejoice with you. When you are sad they mourn with you. When you want someone you can talk to, they are there to listen. They aren’t afraid to share with you their own sorrows, joys, and thoughts.
A true friend will love at all times ("A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." Proverbs17:17). A true friend is a blessing to you. A true friend enjoys being with you and you enjoy being with them. A true friend will be true to you.
These are characters of a true friend and the best kind of friend a man can have, but there is only one who can be a perfectly true friend. His name is Jesus and He will gladly be your friend if you ask Him to. He will never leave you or forsake you. He will always be your friend no matter what. He will always love you. He will stick closer then a brother ("A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Proverbs18:24).
Other examples of true friends are your parents or siblings. If you have godly Christian parents then they will always be true to you and always be there to encourage you to do what is right. They always want to build you up, not tear you down. They‘ll love you no matter what. Your brothers and sisters also are examples of true friends. Never think that just because they’re in your family you can’t be friends with them. Family members are usually the truest friends you’ll find on this earth. Although they aren’t as perfect a friend as Jesus, God gave them to us to be friends.
True friends are the very best kind of friends. They are the kind of friend you should be to your friends.

25 Years!

2010-07-20T18:15:00.000-04:00

I would just like to say “Happy Anniversary!” to my Mom and Dad. You know why? Because to day is their 25th anniversary. So thank you God for bringing my Mom and Dad together 25 years ago. Thank you, Mom and Dad, for marrying each other 25 years ago. Thank you also for setting such a good godly example to your children on how a husband and wife should live. I love you!
Now to any who might read this, you can be thankful my Mom and Dad got married 25 years ago, too. You may not know them, but let me tell you why. This is why, because if they hadn’t, then they wouldn’t have had me. If they hadn’t had me, I wouldn’t be here. If I wasn’t here, this blog wouldn’t be here either. If this blog wasn’t here, I wouldn’t be able to write on it. If I couldn’t write on it, you couldn’t read it and if you couldn’t read it then you wouldn’t be able to read all of my wonderful posts. ( Actually I am just kidding about that, the truth is I hope that many people have been and will be blessed by my posts no matter how terrible my posts maybe.). So with that all said, you can be thankful that my Mom and Dad married 25 years ago. There are actually many more reasons to be thankful my Mom and Dad married, but that would take too long to write it all out, and I also probably wouldn’t be able to remember it all anyway. Praise the Lord! Isn’t God so good!
God bless you!

A COOL Book

2010-07-06T16:34:00.000-04:00

“Dog is quite good,” a priest who survived this camp assured me. “But I can not honestly recommend rat.”(The pastors Wife)

“Lets talk sense. Every man has his price, every woman too.… You’re an honest woman. You can raise your price. Judas was a fool to sell his boss for thirty pieces of silver. He could have held out for 300. Tell us what you want? Freedom for you and your husband? A good parish for him? We’d look after your family. You could be very valuable to us. Well?” when he had finished talking there was a silence in the room. At last I broke it. “Thanks, but I’ve sold myself already. The Son of God was tortured and gave his life for me. Through him I can reach heaven. Can you offer a higher price than that?” The bald man suddenly looked very tired….(The pastors Wife)

‘The Pastors Wife’ a book by Sabina Wurmbrand. (wife of Richard Wurmbrand, the founder of Voice of the Martyrs) She is a Jew. She is a Christian. She is a pastor’s wife. She lives in Rumania. And they are communists. This is a breathtaking account of Sabina Wurmbrand’s life as she endures concentration camp, persecution, poverty, and more, yet she never lets go of her faith in God. It is a story of true love. She was apart from her husband for 15 years, not knowing whether he was dead or alive, yet never getting a divorce or remarrying, although there was much pressure to do so and benefits offered.
If you haven’t already read this book then I would encourage you to do so. Actually I haven’t read it myself, but my mom read it aloud to my sisters and I and it was a wonderful book. I would highly recommend it. It is a book you can definitely call cool.
God bless you!

Favorite Bible Verses

2010-06-24T16:53:00.000-04:00

Hello! I thought I would share with you some of my favorite Bible verses, so I hope you are refreshed and encouraged as you read them.

Isaiah 43:1-7
But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,
And He who formed you, O Israel:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I gave Egypt for your ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
4 Since you were precious in My sight,
You have been honored,
And I have loved you;
Therefore I will give men for you,
And people for your life.
5 Fear not, for I am with you;
I will bring your descendants from the east,
And gather you from the west;
6 I will say to the north, 'Give them up!'
And to the south, 'Do not keep them back!'
Bring My sons from afar,
And My daughters from the ends of the earth —
7 Everyone who is called by My name,
Whom I have created for My glory;
I have formed him, yes, I have made him."

Matthew 19:14
But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."

Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

What about you? What is your favorite Bible verse or verses? I would love to hear from you. I hope you are having a joy filled day. God Bless You!

Cookie Baking

2010-06-17T09:37:00.000-04:00

Hello! So today (or yesterday) we were baking cookies and having a fun time of it, too.
We have a tendency of burning our cookies; it is kind of a natural occurrence in our house. ( Although we have made them before without burning them.) The story goes that, my uncle visits his grandmother. While visiting her, she makes some cookies and he watches her take the first batch out of the oven, then he says to her, “You’re suppose to throw away the first batch”. His Grandmother then asks him why. He response saying, “My Mom always does”. You see his Mom always burnt the first batch and that is why she always threw it away. Hehehehehehe…

So here is some of our cooking episode.
Elisabeth says, “So, how do you know when the cookies are done?”
Hannah replies, “Well, usually if they are kind of brown then that means that they are done or you can wait till they are black or charcoal looking and that means that they are done, too. It really depends on what texture you want it. Another good sign that they are done is if you start smelling a fire or something that is burning. That helps a lot, too. “
(I don’t think the above was really word for word, and I probably added some stuff, too. lol)

A little while later…

Bethany decides to make a pledge, because she doesn’t want to eat any more cookie dough or cookie. The pledge is as follows with maybe a little of my own words added:
“I pledge that I will not eat any more until lunch unless otherwise stated”.

So I hope you have enjoyed reading about some of our amusing accounts. God Bless You!
“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Philippians 4:4

Beautiful Sunset

2010-06-01T20:42:00.000-04:00

Psalm 113:1-3
Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord!
Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore!
From the rising of the sun to its going down
The Lord's name is to be praised.

Psalm 50:1-2
The Mighty One, God the Lord,
Has spoken and called the earth
From the rising of the sun to its going down.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God will shine forth.

Psalm 84:11-12
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
Blessed is the man who trusts in You!

New Word Alive 2010: Go Wayne Grudem!

2010-05-15T16:47:00.000-04:00

To all of the Wayne Grudem fans. I hope you enjoy.

Why Smile

2010-05-05T15:46:00.000-04:00

Why should you smile? Well, one reason is, because it makes others happy and want to smile too.
Also, Jesus loves you, so isn’t that something to smile about. Even if there was no other reason, that would be a good enough reason. Jesus loves us so much that he sent His only begotten Son to die in our place. So shouldn’t we be thankful and happy, because of what Jesus has done for us, and shouldn’t we show it by our facial expression. Smiling is a way of saying that you’re happy. And you have a wonderful reason for being happy, so I see no reason why you shouldn’t smile.
Smiling also blesses others. Some one may be blessed with just a smile. They may not need you to talk to them, give them a gift, or something else. Maybe they just need a smile from you. Maybe that is the thing that would mean the most to them. You may not know how much one little smile can do, but God knows and He knows that it can do a lot.
Smiling is another way of saying thank you. If someone gives you something or does something for you, you should say “thank you”, but smiling also says a lot and sometimes more. When you smile they can see that you are happy and that you really do appreciate what they did for you.
Here is a poem, about smiling, that I really like.

Try Smiling

When the weather suites you not,
Try smiling;
When your coffee isn’t hot,
Try smiling.
When your neighbors don’t do right,
Or your relatives all fight,
Sure ‘tis hard, but then you might-
Try smiling.
Doesn’t change the things, of course-
Just smiling;
But it cannot make them worse,
Just smiling.
And it seems to help your case,
Brightens up a gloomy place;
Then, it sort o’ rests your face-
Just smiling.

-Anonymous-

I found that poem in “The Family Album of Favorite Poems”.

I hope you are having a wonderful day. God bless you!

God is our Protector

2010-04-19T16:24:00.000-04:00

Do you ever think about how many times each day God protects you. It is so easy to get in to our daily routine and not ever even think about how God is protecting us each day, until you almost end up in a car accident or some other not-every-day scenario. When this happens you are suddenly awakened to the fact that God was really protecting you. But what about the times when you may not have seen that you were in danger and so you never even knew that God was protecting you. Well, the truth is God is protecting you every single day from numerous things that could have happened to you yet didn’t. Every single day God is looking after each one of his children. Isn’t it wonderful that we have such a loving heavenly Father.

“As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a SHIELD to all who trust in Him. 2 Samuel 22:31”
“He shall cover you with his feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge: His truth shall be your SHIELD and buckler. Psalm 91:4”
“Every word of God is pure; He is a SHIELD to those who put their trust in Him. Proverbs 30:5”

Two Observations

2010-04-01T20:15:00.000-04:00

There are two things that I just recently observed. The first was that of an older woman who was obviously dying (and in fact did die) and whether or not she was a Christian and went to heaven I do not know. The other thing that I observed or saw was beautiful huge houses that were owned by obviously very wealthy people. But if you think about it then what is going to happen to the people that own these houses? They are going to die and go either to heaven or hell, just as the older lady did. And then what will happen to their houses? Well, I can tell you one thing and that is that they are not taking that house to either of those places. Most likely what will happen to those houses is for a while they might be kept up, but eventually no one will be able to afford to keep it up and it will begin to rust, rot and deteriorate just as everything else on this earth will (see Matthew 6:19). So then for most of these houses it was wasted money and time. Instead of using their money or time for things that would bring eternal fruit, meaning using it for God’s glory, they used for there own selfish desires that were only temporary. How much better it would have been if these people had used there money to further God’s kingdom and although they may not have had such a nice house or so much money on this earth, they would have had a whole lot more in heaven and would be a lot happier. (see Matthew 6:20-21, 2 Corinthians 4:18) If you put your trust in Jesus then you will have that hope of having treasures in heaven (the greatest of which is God Himself) and a desire to store up your treasures there, but if you do not have that hope then you only have those treasures that you have on this earth.
So where are you going to store your treasures? On this earth or in heaven? I am going to store mine in heaven, by God’s grace.
God Bless You!

The Benefits and Joys of Having Many Siblings

2010-03-06T17:03:00.000-05:00

Hi! Here are my thoughts on the benefits and joys of having many siblings.

1. You don’t have to do all the chores yourself, because there are so many others to share the load. Many hands make light work, but too many cooks spoil the broth!
2. When you need help in school you have many people to choose from to help you. (If you are Homeschooled like me and if you are not the oldest).
3. There is almost always someone to play with, talk to, or just be with, so you don’t usually get lonely.
4. You do not get bored as easily, because someone can usually come up with something to do.
5. You have a lot of comforters when you get sick or hurt. (especially if you have a sweet little sister, who likes to comfort, like I do).
6. You can learn a lot from your siblings who enjoy telling you what they learned about something.
7. You learn to get along with a variety of people, so when you go out into the world you can know how to handle certain situations with different people.
8. If you don’t want to do something yourself then you have more of a chance of being able to get someone else to do it for you, because you have more people to ask.( Ok, that was called a lazy benefit . lol )
9. You can be more of a servant, because there are more people to serve. (Especially when someone else in your family is taking advantage of the “lazy” benefit.)
10. You always have a mechanic near by. If you break something, there is usually someone who knows how to fix it some way or another or at least thinks he knows!
11. There is always something to laugh about.
12. If you use bad grammar then there is always someone to correct you on it.
13. You learn to communicate with all ages.
14. You will have friends for life.

These are some of them and I’m sure there are lots more. So you see having a large family is truly a blessing. Of course when the oldest start going to college then there is less at home, and so it seems that your family is not so large any more, but of course you also get the joys of seeing them when they come home if they do come home, especially brothers (well in my family anyway, since they are the only ones who have gone to college.)
Of course, if you are one that doesn’t have a large family then I don’t want to make you ungrateful or wish for something that you don’t have. God knows the perfect size for every family.

God Bless You!

Common Sense Sanitation Tips

2010-02-24T19:02:00.000-05:00

1. Always wash your hands after using the bathroom.
2. Always wash your hands before eating, if possible.
3. Always wash your hands before cooking.
4. Cover your mouth or turn away when you sneeze or cough.
5. Always, always, wash your hands after being outside and handling the dead snake you found!

And remember these are not the only things you should wash your hands after doing.

How to Wash Your Hands

1. Put your hands under hot water to get them wet.
2. Take them out from under the water and put soap on your hands.
3. Scrub the soap all over your hands, out from under the water, for at least thirty seconds (I must admit, I don’t usually wash my hands that long myself, but that is about how long you’re suppose to do it). Make sure that plenty of suds are covering your hands.
4. Put them back under the water and scrub them under the water as you rinse off all the soap.
5. Dry your hands on a clean towel.

If you follow these instructions then you will be spreading a lot less germs and there will probably be less sickness in your home, as well. God Bless You!

Deer

2010-02-09T14:56:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but we like to watch deer when they come wondering on to our land. Well we did like to watch deer, and we still do, but recently we have been seeing them a lot more often. I was thinking that maybe they were coming to our land, because they finally figured out that we are safe and won't shoot them. Today we saw 16 deer. It seemed like they were everywhere. I think it is really neat to see so many at one time. I also like to see them all bounding away with their white tails sticking straight up. "As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God." Psalm 42:1

Work

2010-02-06T10:30:00.000-05:00

How many of you enjoy work? I must say for myself that work isn’t always my favorite thing. Some times it’s very dirty work or sometimes it’s a job I just don’t like. Or sometimes I’m just not in the mood for it. But then again sometimes (only by God's grace) it is the most enjoyable thing in the world.
Well, I think it’s really the way that we look at it. If you turn it into some kind of game then it usually ends up quite enjoyable. Like for example my sisters and I, when we were younger, (and even sometimes now) would do our chores like we were hotel workers and were cleaning the rooms, or sometimes we were restaurant workers cleaning up the kitchen, or sometimes we were slaves or servants. Or some times we would pretend that we were people that would clean the house really good for other people, and I’m sure that there are a number of other random things that we did to make it fun. (My sisters and I have great imagination skills.)
Another thing that I do is sing or whistle while I work and that makes it more enjoyable as well.
If that doesn’t work than I think it’s helpful to remind myself to do all things for God’s glory. And that it is storing treasures in heaven to do it with a cheerful heart and to do it well.
So if you haven’t tried these things before than you might want to give it a try. And like I said already, I don’t always do work very joyfully myself, and I’m sure that any of my family members can testify to that. God Bless You!

Snow Fun

2010-02-01T15:29:00.000-05:00

Hi!
We have been having a fun time sledding in the snow. It is the first good snow that we've had in about six years (and what I mean by good is that we were actually able to have good sledding, on our road, which is about 1/2 mile long). So for about two days we sledded pretty much nonstop, but today (the third day) we were only able to sled good in the morning, because it began to melt and get slushy. God is such an amazing creator. Here is a video of an amazing jump (or bump) that we made.

The first person is me and the other is our neighbor. She was the one that went over so smoothly and not me. lol

A Poem to Enjoy

2010-01-28T15:38:00.000-05:00

Do you like poems? Well, I do and here is one of my favorites.

It Couldn’t Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one
Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it”;
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

Written by Edgar A. Guest

Well, I hope you liked that poem. Now maybe you would like to go do something that you thought couldn’t be done.
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

10 Questions

2010-01-21T15:03:00.000-05:00

Hello!
Welcome to my blog. I hope you enjoy it.
I have decided to ask some questions this time and I would love to hear some of your answers. So here they are:

1. Have you read the whole Bible?
2. Have you read Desiring God by John Piper?
3. Have you read Don’t Waste Your Life by John Piper?
4. Have you read Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris?
5. Do you like to read books?
6. What is one of your favorite Bible verses?
7. If you were given the opportunity to go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
8. Do you like math?
9. Is Jesus your treasure?
10. Which do you like the best: mountains, beaches, or huge fields? And why?

Now here are my answers to these questions.

1. Yes
2. Yes, not including the epilogue and appendix 1,2,3,4, and 5, But No, if including those parts.
3. Yes
4. Yes
5. Yes and no, if they are interesting then I like to read it, but usually if I like it than I don’t want to put it down and that is the part I don’t like.
6. Proverbs 18:24 A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
7. Scotland
8. Yes, if I understand it.
9. Yes
10. Mountains, because they are so beautiful and big and you get to hike up them and when you get to the top you get to look way down below and you can see birds flying below you instead of above you. (That was just an example of a run-on sentence.)

The Emptiness of Worldly Things

2010-01-14T14:34:00.000-05:00

Hello, everyone that reads this! I hope you enjoy reading my blog and are blessed.

I was reading in 1Samuel this morning and came across these verses.

1Samuel 12:20-22,24
...But serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing. For the Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people....Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you.

So you see, if you go after the things of this world then you are going after emptiness. They will not satisfy or profit you. Instead go to Jesus and love Him above all else for He is better than anything you could ever want. He is the only one that can fill your emptiness. He is the only one that can truely satisfy you.

God bless you!

High Heeled Shoes? Not an Option!

2010-01-07T13:47:00.000-05:00

Did you ever stop to think about what you are doing to your feet when you wear high-heeled shoes? Did you realize that high-heeled shoes can cause a lot of problems to your feet? Well they can and now let me tell you why.
First of all they cause your foot to be forced into an unnatural position. It causes your toes to be crammed either by forcing them together from the sides or forcing them in. Having your toes forced into these positions can cause problems such as bunions, hammer toes, neuromas etc. All these problems and more are generally pretty painful and permanent unless you have surgery on them. Wearing high heels also causes the Achilles tendon to shorten which can cause problems when you wear flat shoes.
Wearing high-heels not only causes problems with your feet, but also with your lower back. It forces your back into a position that can crush your vertebrae.
Wearing high heels puts you in much more danger. You cannot balance your self as well; therefore, you are more liable to falling and twisting your ankle if not breaking it. Another factor is that you cannot walk as quickly, thus if you were in an emergency situation your ability to move quickly would be hindered. Consequently high heels are not very safe.
Not only are high heeled shoes harmful for your feet and not safe, but also most of them not very comfortable. So why wear high heeled shoes? If your only reason is because they are fashionable then I say that is not a good reason. If all of that does not convince you to stop wearing high heels then I will ask another question. Do you desire to take care of the body God has given you? Not wearing high heeled shoes or wearing them as little as possible helps your feet to be healthier, thus keeping them in better condition.

Why Modesty

2009-12-31T16:42:00.001-05:00

Many Christian women in our day and culture don’t dress modestly and hardly even consider it. Often fathers are too afraid to tell there daughter when her clothes are not appropriate, so their daughter doesn’t even realize it. Well, I would like to tell you why it is important to dress modestly.

I will begin with saying that immodest clothes are not very comfortable. Even though I don’t wear tight clothes I have tried them on before and found them to be very uncomfortable. Other clothes may not be tight, but feel uncomfortable, because they are low in the front or too short, so I just don’t feel all the way dressed and really am not. So comfort is one small reason why I dress modestly.

My Second and more important reason is that it can cause men to stumble. Men think differently than women, therefore, when they see women not all the way covered or in such tight clothes that it makes certain parts stand out, it causes men to look at her in a lustful way, causing men to sin. So if you want to help protect the men then dress modestly. If you are not sure about something that you are wearing then ask your father or some other Godly man about it and he can tell you what he thinks.

Another reason for dressing modestly is that the Bible says not to live as the world lives. (And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2). We should not only want to act and live differently from the world, but dress differently as well. By dressing modestly you are being different from the world and can enhance your witness for Christ.

You should want your clothes to bring glory to God. You should not want to wear clothes that would draw attention to yourself, but that would direct people to Jesus. God cares about the heart more than the outward appearance. God wants your heart to be beautiful and pure, and the way you dress reflects that which is in your heart. So dressing modestly is a reflection of a pure and beautiful heart.

I will end with saying, if you want to be different from the world and help protect men from stumbling and direct people to Jesus, than please dress modestly.

Here are some other references you can look up. The ones with a star are especially good ones.

*1Peter3:3-6

*Proverbs31:30-31

1John2:15

Colossians2:20-22

2Corinthians1:12

*Romans14:21